


Catching a Shooting Star

by LeelaSmall



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Courting Rituals, Enemies to Lovers, F/M, Human Bill Cipher, Wendigos from Until Dawn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-30
Updated: 2019-10-30
Packaged: 2021-01-13 10:07:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 37,884
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21242345
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeelaSmall/pseuds/LeelaSmall
Summary: Bill Cipher makes a deal with Time Baby; he has seven days to make someone fall in love with him, or he will be obliterated. So he decides to try his luck with the only person he thinks he'll have a chance with: Mabel Pines, his "Shooting Star". Will he be successful, or will is own feelings eventually get in the way? [Original publish date: August 24, 2015]





	1. The Deal

Time Baby was not happy. At all. Not only had he been called to judge over a series of trials of people and creatures who had caused serious anomalies in the time stream, he had woken up extremely cranky and with a wet diaper. Needless to say his patience was wearing thin.

He could've been doing much more important things, such as watching warriors battle each other in another Globnar tournament, finally destroying the resistance or even napping. But THIS?! This was clearly a waste of his abilities.

"Fluveer, you have been accused of several charges of attempting to disrupt the space-time continuum." The giant floating infant declared, his booming voice echoing through space and the ears of the accused duck-like creature before him. "How do you plead?"

"Uhhh..." Fluveer tapped the tips of his fingers together nervously as he tried to think of a clever enough answer. "Not guilty?"

Time Baby didn't think twice. He fired two red laser beams, one from each eye, obliterating the being instantly.

"Who's next?" He asked the robot on his left, who whispered the next convict's name into his ear, causing him to release an annoyed groan. "Oh, him... Fine, send him in."

The guards dragged in the next victim, shoving him against the floor when he was right under their ruler. The yellow one-eyed triangle looked up, the shackles on his wrists clanking loudly as he tried to lift himself up.

"He-hey, Time Baby!" He greeted the overlord quite nonchalantly, almost as if he were unaware of his current situation. "Boy, it's been a while! You look great, by the way. Have you lost weight?"

"Bill Cipher." Time Baby grumbled. "I was hoping I'd never have to see you again. Not after what happened last time."

"Aw come on, I thought we were cool with that! So I tried to overpower you a couple of times... Water under the bridge, right?"

"SILENCE!" The giant baby ordered, shooting a laser beam at Bill's feet and making him jump back with a yelp. "You are in no position to talk to me like that. Not only have you tried to mess up several timelines, you have a laundry list of serious violations, all committed this year alone."

"Oh, psh!" Bill rolled his eye in disbelief. "It can't be that long."

Time Baby's robotic servant handed the ruler a rolled up list, which when opened, unrolled itself onto the floor and past the glowing triangle, with no end in sight.

"Let's see here..." Time Baby squinted as he read what had been written on the long piece of paper. "You have been accused of possession seventy two people, invaded the dreams of thirty six, and you also have several accounts of corruption, psychological warfare and... auto theft?"

"I felt like going for a ride!" Bill crossed his arms and looked away. "Not my fault that convertible had been left with the top down."

"You threw off the economy of an entire country?!" Time Baby exclaimed as he read another item from the list.

"Hehe, yeah..." Bill chuckled, wiping a tear from his eye. "Those Greeks sure are a bunch of whiny babies."

"I've seen enough." The overlord rolled up the list again and handed it back to the robot. "Cipher, you are a plague upon humanity. Not once have done anything beneficial towards anyone or anything. All you do is cause harm. You're a treacherous nuisance that shouldn't even exist!"

"Oh stop, you're making me blush!" Bill giggled sarcastically.

"And you can't even take your own trial seriously! So I've come to a decision. I sentence you to immediate annihilation!"

"Oooh, immediate annihilation! I'm so scared!" The triangle pretended to be frightened, afterwards placing his hands on his sides, looking rather unimpressed. "Listen here, Hour Glass, we both know I have enough power to defeat anyone and anything that stands in my way, so could we just cut to the part where I vanish into thin air and you never see me again?"

"You actually think it would be that easy?"

"Well, yeah!" He snorted. "Why shouldn't it be?"

"Haven't you noticed that you haven't been able to float since you got here?"

Bill's eye widened as he looked down at his slender legs and noticed how his feet were touching the ground. He tried to lift himself up into the air, but to no avail. He tried using his other powers, but those didn't seem to be working either.

"What... how..." He started to hyperventilate, panic finally setting in. "How is this possible?!"

"The shackles you have on were specially designed to block the magical powers of anyone who wears them." Time Baby explained, a triumphant smirk appearing on his face. "There is no escaping your fate this time, Cipher."

"H-hold on, man, let's talk this through! I'm sure we can reach some sort of arrangement!"

"You really think I would be foolish enough to trust you? You are the most untrustworthy creature in the universe!"

"W-well, w-what if..." Bill's eye darted everywhere as he tried to think of a solution. "What if I could prove myself as someone able to be trusted?"

Time Baby paused, raising a brow at the yellow demon. Somehow that possibility intrigued him and he wondered if there could be a way that Bill Cipher could prove his worth.

"I'm listening." He narrowed his eyes, edging him to continue.

"If can make someone trust me, and I mean REALLY trust me, then will you reconsider my sentence?"

Time Baby leaned back and tapped his chin as he pondered about the isosceles demon's proposition.

Bill was starting to sweat. He didn't even know he was able to do such a thing.

"Very well." He finally answered. "I will allow you to prove yourself, mostly because I would really like to see you try."

"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" Bill threw himself on his knees and bowed repeatedly. "I promise you won't regret this!"

"Not so fast. I'm not done yet."

Bill froze. What was that overgrown sack of flesh going to do now?

"I will allow you this personality test under certain conditions. First, you have one week to get someone to fully trust you."

"One week?!" Bill exclaimed. "That's barely any time at all!"

"It's more than enough time for such a task." Time Baby stated before continuing. "Secondly, you will have limited powers."

"How limited?"

"Limited to just floating, teleporting, shapeshifting and conjuring harmless objects and living beings. We wouldn't want you manipulating or trying to hurt your victim, would we?"

"No, of course not." Bill commented drily.

"Also, this has to a genuine proof of trust, so we it has something that really matters." He turned to the robot on his left. "Tell me, what is the ultimate demonstration of trust?"

"I believe that is what humans call 'love'." The mechanical being replied.

"Love, you say? Very well, that settles it." Time Baby straightened himself. "Bill Cipher, you have seven days to make someone fall in love with you."

"You're kidding, right?" Bill asked, barely believing what he was hearing.

"Not at all. If you are successful, then I will reconsider your sentence. But if by the end of the seventh day you were not able to make someone fall in love with you, you will be immediately eliminated. Now, I will teleport you to any place or dimension where you think you might be able to complete this challenge, but you won't be allowed to leave until the seven days are over. And please have in mind that, as soon as you arrive, you will only have the powers I listed previously. Where do you wish to go?"

Bill almost wanted to kill himself for being put in such a degrading situation, but this was his only change of freedom. He thought long hard about the conditions Time Baby had stated, and what would be the best way to work with them and still be successful. Then it dawned on him… a plan so crazy it might just work.

"Time Baby, take me back to..." He narrowed his eye dramatically. "...the present."

"Very well." He charged his forehead laser. "I will see you in seven days."

Bill felt himself being engulfed in the floating infant's laser beam, being transported through time and space across different dimensions. When he felt the ride was over, he opened his eye and saw he was in a dark forest where dawn seemed to be breaking. He floated through the trees for a few miles until he finally came out on a hill that overlooked a small town, the street lights still glistening in the distance. He snapped his fingers and a telescope appeared in his hands, which he used to gaze into the town and make out exactly where he was. He focused the optical instrument on the large billboard at the town's entrance, and saw that it read 'Welcome to Gravity Falls.'

"Well, well! Looks like that fat brat read my mind." He threw the telescope away and conjured a big gold-framed mirror. "Now, for my dear victim..."

The planet Earth appeared on the surface of the mirror and zoomed in on the United States of America until it settled on a live image of two very similar teenagers, a boy and a girl, sitting at a bus stop.

"There you are, my precious." Bill hissed, swiping his fingers on the mirror and zooming in on the tickets the girl was holding. "Oh, and what luck! Two tickets to Gravity Falls. They must be coming over to spend another summer with their idiotic great-uncles." He rubbed his hands together, the details of his mischievous plan unfurling in his mind. "Soon she'll be putty in my hands."

With a wave of his hand the image disappeared and the mirror turned back to just that, a regular mirror. Bill examined his reflection from different angles, and, even if he was pleased with his current appearance, he couldn't help but sigh in annoyance.

"If I really want this to work, I guess I should slip into something a little more... appropriate."

A blue flame appeared on each of his hands and he elevated them over his head, causing the flames to combine. He slowly brought his hands down over his body, the flame covering him top to bottom. After a while he separated his hands and the flame consequently disappeared. When he turned back to the mirror to see his new look, a wide grin spread across his new face.

"Perfect." He snickered evilly, turning around to peer at the town below him as the sun rose on the horizon. "You're mine, Shooting Star."


	2. Welcome Back (Day 1)

"Dipper, wake up! We're here!"

Young Mabel Pines shook her snoozing twin brother's shoulder until he finally awoke, just in time to see their bus entering the small town of Gravity Falls, Oregon. The two seventeen-year-olds smiled as they started to pass all those familiar houses and stores.

"Unbelievable..." Dipper yawned, stretching his arms up. "After five whole years, this place looks exactly the same."

"I know!" Mabel leaned closer to the window, almost pressing her face against the dirty glass. "Why did it take us so long to come back, anyway?"

"Mom and dad wanted us to focus more on our studies when we started High School, remember? Plus they realized that Grunkle Stan was a bad influence on us."

"That's just ridiculous! Grunkle Stan was never a bad influence. He taught us how to run a business! A corrupt business, but still a business. And as for High School, we don't need to worry about that anymore!" The brunette latched onto her brother's arm and started hopping in her seat. "We graduated! We're FREE!"

Dipper laughed at his sister's enthusiasm. They might've been nearing adulthood, but her personality hadn't changed at all from what she was like as a child.

It was true; the Mystery Twins were finally done with High School. Once summer ended, not only would they be turning eighteen, they would also be off to College, the two going their separate ways for the first time.

Dipper was confident about his future. As was expected, his plan was to follow in his great-uncle Ford's footsteps and continuing his studies of the supernatural, if possible right there in Gravity Falls, where paranormal occurrences were a habit. Mabel, on the other hand, enrolled in Community College, but she hadn't chosen a major yet. She had no idea what she wanted to do with her life, but she told herself she still had a lot of time to figure that out.

That was one of the reasons they were headed to Gravity Falls. They had worked hard on their studies all year, and their parents thought they deserved a break after graduating. So when they asked the twins where they would like to go for their summer vacation, they weren't surprised when they said they wanted to go visit their great-uncles in Gravity Falls for a few weeks.

"I wonder if Soos still works at the Mystery Shack after marrying Melody." Dipper commented, remembering what his friend had written in a postcard he sent him two years ago.

"I hope the Grunkles are taking good care of Waddles." Mabel squeezed her cheeks together when she remembered her beloved pig. "Oooooh, I miss him so much!"

"I still can't believe Grunkle Stan agreed so easily to keep him after mom and dad refused to let you take him home with us. He must've been still feeling bad for what happened with the pterodactyl."

The twins had to hold onto their seats, or else they would've been launched forward onto the bus's filthy floor when the vehicle abruptly came to a halt. When they looked up they saw they had arrived at the Gravity Falls bus station. They quickly grabbed their luggage and exited the bus, looking around to see if they could spot anyone that looked familiar. After the crowd of other bus passengers dispersed, they spotted an slightly overweight Hispanic man holding a piece of cardboard with the words 'Dipper + Hambone' sloppily written on it.

"Soos!" They exclaimed in unison as they ran towards their friend, throwing their arms around him at the same time and pulling him into a hug.

"Hey, dudes!" He laughed and returned their embrace. "It's great to see you again!"

"Soos, you look great!" Mabel commented as she looked at him from top to bottom, mainly focusing on his grown-up-ish attire, constituted by a pair of jeans and a checkered shirt. "Really great!"

"Yeah, married life seems to be treating you well." Dipper added.

"Well, you know how women are, always wanting what's best for you." Soos scratched his head, messing up his neatly-combed brown hair. "No offense, Hambone."

"None taken." Mabel quickly replied, a wide grin on her face. "Melody did a fantastic job!"

"We should head back to the Shack." Soos said as he checked his wrist watch. "Your uncles are waiting for you, and Ford can't stand when people are late. I should know. He almost cut off my head that one time."

Soos regaled them with this and some other stories as he drove across town in his rundown car towards the Mystery Shack. They arrived at the old tourist trap about thirty minutes later, their heads filled with tales from their portly chum and their stomachs in pain from laughing so much.

"And that's why you should never walk out of your house to check the mail without taking your keys." Soos ended another story as he closed the car's door.

"Wow, that was some adventure you had, Soos." Dipper remarked as he and Mabel pulled out their bags.

"What can I say? I'm a very eventful dude." He shrugged and crossed his arms, feeling important.

"You're not telling them about the time you went outside to check the mail in your underwear and got locked out, are you?"

Soos' smile fell and he turned around to see his boss and his twin brother, who were glaring at him rather unimpressed. He blushed and rubbed the back of his head, mumbling excuses as Mabel ran pass him and tackled both her great-uncles in a tight hug, earning pained sounds from the old men.

"Grunkle Stan, Grunkle Ford!" She squealed and squeezed tighter. "I missed you both so much!"

"You're gonna miss me even more if you squeeze me to death!" Stan complained as he lowered her arms from around him and his brother.

"Mabel, look at you!" Ford gestured towards his great-niece. "You're all grown up! And you look beautiful."

"Aww, thanks!" Mabel blushed bashfully.

"And look at this guy!" Stan said when he saw his great-nephew approaching him. "You're finally starting to look like a man."

"Gee, thanks, Grunkle Stan." Dipper rolled his eyes with a smile.

"Wait, is that what I think it is?" The old man adjusted his glasses and looked closely at Dipper's slightly stubbly chin. "It is! Facial hair! Good job, kid!"

"Dipper, my boy!" Ford step forward and gave him a pat on the back. "Good to see you!"

"It's great to see you too, Grunkle Ford." Dipper rubbed his back from the rather strong pat he received. "Have you detected any new paranormal occurrences?"

"Well, let's just say there's a secret herd of unicorns on the southern part of the forest that isn't very secret anymore." He declared with a wink.

After a few more minutes of talking they all walked into the house, the twins running up the stairs towards the attic, their old bedroom. They slammed the door open and looked around; the place was exactly how they had left it.

"You'd think they would at least clean up a bit for our arrival." Dipper muttered to himself as he ran a finger through the dust-covered table next to the wall.

"Lighten up, Dippingsauce." Mabel threw her bag onto the foot of her bed and sat on it. "The place looks great! Just as I remember it."

She kicked off her sneakers and flopped onto the soft comforter, the mattress squeaking under her weight. She let out a content sigh and closed her eyes, her brother chuckling at her behavior.

"Well, you make yourself at home, then. I'm gonna see what's for lunch."

She opened her eyes just in time to see her twin exit the room and close the door behind him. She gazed at the ceiling as she recalled all the adventures she and Dipper had had all those years ago in that very town, and wondered what this summer would have in store for them. Knowing that place, there was one thing she was sure of: there would never be a dull moment.

"It's good to be back." She sighed and smiled to herself as she closed her eyes again, enjoying the silence around her.

"It sure is."

Her eyes snapped open and her smile fell. Had she just heard someone talk? She turned to the right; there was no one there. But when she turned to her left...

"Boo."

Mabel let out a shriek and fell to the floor. There was a stranger on her bed! He was looking at her with a large grin, his head propped up on his hand as he lied down on the bed in a rather provocative pose. He was blond and was wearing a yellow tailcoat over a white dress shirt, black dress pants, a bow tie, a top hat and a… triangular eyepatch?

"Who... what... why..." She said between breaths as she backed away from this weirdly attractive character.

"Surprise!" He shouted as he sat up, throwing his arms up as confetti blew out of his sleeves. "Bet you weren't expecting to see me, uh?"

"Who... who the heck are you?!" Mabel finally asked, causing the blond man to frown and drop his arms to the sides.

"You seriously don't remember me? After all we've been through?" He huffed and crossed arms. "Honestly, I expected better from you, Shooting Star."

"'Shooting Star'?" Mabel whispered to herself, her eyes widening when she remembered the only person who called her that. "Bill? Bill Cipher?!"

"Ding ding ding!" He sang, tapping the tip of his nose with his index finger as he said each 'ding'. "I knew you remembered me."

"What're you even doing here?" Mabel slowly lifted herself from the floor without taking her eyes off of the humanized demon, lest he try to do something.

"Can't an outer-dimensional dream demon pop by to visit his favorite human?" He shrugged innocently as he floated himself off of the bed and closer to the teenager.

"Yeah, right!" Mabel scoffed, taking a step back. "Every time I see you something bad happens. And by the way, don't just appear in my room like that! What if I were naked?"

"You're right! How could I have been so careless?" He slapped his forehead and snapped his fingers, a video camera appearing in his hands. "There! Now I'll be ready for that eventuality."

He was rewarded with a slap to the face from a very angry and extremely flustered Mabel, which almost knocked his top hat off of his head. He burst into giggles, running a hand over his now red and stinging cheek.

"Oh yeah, I'd forgotten how hilarious pain is!" he snickered.

"Get out of my room!" Mabel shouted, pointing at the door.

"Aw come on, Shooting Star, don't be like that!"

"And stop calling me that! My name is Mabel!"

"I know, but that's such a boring name." He twirled horizontally in the air. "Shooting Star is much better."

"You better get out right now, or... or..." She looked around her room for something she could use as a weapon, quickly grabbing one of her shoes and pointing it menacingly at Bill. "...I'll use this!"

"Oh no, a shoe." He deadpanned. "What're you gonna do, shove it in my face and smother me to death with the smell?"

She looked for him to the shoe and back repeatedly, her face red with anger, and threw the shoe against the floor in a fit of rage. She groaned loudly and turned her back to the demon, who was starting to lose his patience as well.

"Look, you're a smart kid, so I'll level with you." He tried placing his arm around her shoulders, but she just brushed him off. He took a deep breath to calm himself and adjusted his bow tie. "You see, the real reason I'm here is because... I'm done with evil. It's too much work being the villain all the time. So I've decided to turn a new leaf. No more Mr. Bad Triangle."

"Yeah, right!" Mabel snorted, keeping her back turned to him.

"I'm serious! I came here because I want to make amends with you and your family, who I feel I've done the most wrong towards."

"I don't believe you. How can I be sure you're not just planning to kidnap us all and make us your personal slaves?"

"How about the fact that I couldn't even if I wanted to?"

Mabel turned her head around and cocked a brow at him.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that a great tragedy has befallen me!" He threw his head back dramatically, the back of his hand on his forehead for more effect. "During these past few years my powers have been deteriorating, and now I'm lucky to still have any."

"Are you serious?" Mabel turned back around to face the demon again, her skeptical expression remaining.

"Dead serious. I'm down to being able to float, teleport, shape shift and conjure things. And I can't conjure anything more dangerous than a butter knife."

Mabel's expression softened just a tad, yet she didn't lower her defenses. Bill decided to keep playing the pity card until she finally cracked.

"And that' not even the worst part. With my powers now limited and getting worse, I've been rendered..." His lip trembled and he had to cover his face with his hands. "...homeless!"

"You mean you can't go back to the mindscape?" Mabel inquired, concern starting to show in her voice. Bill grinned behind his hands.

"Not there nor any other dimension. I'm stuck in this dreadful place for the rest of my days."

"I thought you were immortal."

"Thanks for reminding me." Bill slumped his shoulders sadly. "That only makes matters worse!"

"Well, where have you been living?"

"Oh, cardboard boxes, treetops, other people's attics..." He sighed, hanging his head in defeat. "I've truly hit rock bottom."

Mabel bit her lip. She couldn't stand to see him like this. He seemed genuinely sad and hopeless, and as much harm as he had caused her and her brother, her lovable and selfless nature couldn't allow him to suffer like that.

"I don't know... How can I be sure you're telling the truth?"

"I give you my word." He lifted his hand and made a cross over his chest with his index finger. "No more tricks. Honest!"

She stared at him with a doubtful expression for a few seconds, unsure whether she could really trust him or not. Bill sighed once again.

"Look, I understand you have your doubts about me due to all the harm I caused you and your family and whatnot, but you can believe me when I say I have truly regretted my past actions and really want to make things better between us." He snapped his fingers and conjured up a greeting card. "So what do you say? Can we bury the hatchet?"

He handed her the card with a hopeful smile. Mabel took it and saw the cover was a picture of a puppy with abnormally large sad eyes with the words 'I'm Vewy Sowwy' written above its head. When she looked up from the card, Bill was glaring at her expectantly, his uncovered eye as big as the puppy's.

Mabel felt her insides churning. Why did she have to a sucker for cutesy stuff?

"Fine." She sighed and gave him an angry look. "But if you even dare to try something funny…"

"You have my permission to punish however you like if I do." He extended his gloved right hand in her direction, this time flame free. "Friends?"

She looked from his hand to his face repeatedly for a few seconds, still feeling a bit unsure about whether she should trust him or not. But he did say she could punish him however she wanted if he were to betray her in any way, so maybe he really had changed.

After what seemed like an eternity, Mabel finally took hold of Bill's hand and shook it, giving the humanized dream demon a small smile.

"Friends." She declared, her tone showing she had loosened up a bit.

"Sweet!" Bill rejoiced by doing a backflip in midair. "So, how should we celebrate our newfound friendship? Throw a party? Trash this place? Eat sweets until we explode?"

With a wave of his hand he pulled out a chocolate chip cookie from Mabel's ear, which he inserted into her mouth right afterwards.

"Actually…" she spoke with her mouth full, gulping down the treat before continuing. "…I just got here after a ten-hour bus ride, so my main priority right now is to unpack."

"No problem, I can help you with that!"

With a snap of his fingers, Mabel's suitcase unzipped itself and popped open. Bill dove face first into her clothes, surprisingly enough being able to fit inside the bag enough to disappear beneath its contents. He emerged after a second with a bright-orange sweater in his hands and a sock on his head.

"Oh, yo-you don't need to do that…" Mabel stuttered, feeling uncomfortable to see a guy going through her clothes.

"Please, I insist!" Bill said as he tossed away the sweater and dug deeper into the suitcase. "I may love to cause chaos, but I'll have you know that I am very organi – Heeeee-LLO!"

He pulled out a rainbow-patterned bikini top, one that would most definitely look rather reveling on whoever wore it. He turned to Mabel, who was blushing deeply and tugging at the hem of her shooting star t-shirt as she avoid Bill's gaze.

"Nice threads." He grinned slyly and wiggled his eyebrows at her. "Do your parents know you own this?"

"Hey Mabel, Stan and Ford are gonna order pizza for lunch. What do you want on yo–"

Dipper trailed off when he opened the door to his room and saw the peculiar scene before him: a strange-looking, yet oddly familiar man sitting inside his sister's suitcase holding what he assumed was a piece of her clothing, and Mabel standing in the middle of the room looking extremely embarrassed.

He paused to process what he was seeing before he finally decided to break the awkward silence around them.

"Somehow, I knew something like this was going to happen." Dipper groaned as he pinched the bridge of his nose and glanced at the stranger. "Mabel, who's this?"

"My my, after all these years…" Bill threw the bikini top across the room and crossed his arms against his chest, examining the boy from head to toe with a smile. "Time's been good to you, Pine Tree."

"Bill?!" Dipper exclaimed as he quickly positioned himself in front of Mabel with his arms stretched out to protect her. "You better stay back! I know where the journals are, and I know they have a few spells that can make your life very unpleasant!"

"Whoa, whoa! Ease up there, kid!" the demon sat up straight and held up his hands in front of him in a placating manner. "Believe it not, this time I'm not here to wreak havoc upon humanity."

"Do you really expect me to buy that? What else could you be here for?"

"Well, if you must know, I came here to apologize. Make amends. Extend the olive branch, if you will."

The demon lifted his top hat off his head and out came a white dove that flew towards Dipper and sat on top of the boy's head, defecating on his hair right afterwards.

"Hehe… poop." Mabel giggled, earning an angry glare from her brother.

Bill smirked. He was finally starting to get to her.

"I still don't believe you." Dipper retorted as he shooed the dove away and wiped his head. "You're nothing but bad news."

"Oh please, what do I have to do to prove that I'm not here to harm you?" Bill asked exasperatedly. "Do I have to tell you my entire sob story, like I did to your sister? Because I really don't wanna do that again. It's long and quite painful to recall."

"Dipper…" Mabel pulled her brother aside to another corner of the room so they could talk in private. "…I think he's telling the truth."

"Are you nuts?" Dipper whispered loudly. "You actually believe that psycho? Have you forgotten all he's done to us in the past? All the suffering he's put us through? He stole my body, Mabel!"

"Of course I haven't forgotten. It's just… He really poured his heart out to me. Plus he told me that his powers are getting weaker and now he can't even go back to his own dimension anymore."

"Mabel, he's a pathological liar! How can you be sure he's not just tricking you into feeling sorry for him?"

"Because I can feel he's being honest for once. You and I know he would never reach out to anyone for help under any circumstance, yet here he is. He really is trying to make things better. Plus he's been here for over ten minutes, and nothing bad happened yet. I really think we should give him another chance."

Dipper glanced back at Bill, who gave the boy a wide grin as a golden halo shone over his head, undoubtedly created by the demon himself.

"You really think he's worth it?" Dipper asked as he turned back to his sister.

"Absolutely." She patted his shoulder reassuringly with a smile. "Don't worry, bro bro. You know I'm an excellent judge of character."

"You're a terrible judge of character! You thought five gnomes in a hoodie were a teenage boy!"

"That was different. I was young and naïve back then. Now I'm older and more mature."

"Sure you are." Dipper rolled his eyes, which caused his sister to lightly punch his arm. They both laughed for a few seconds before adopting a more serious demeanor and turning around to face the humanized triangle. "OK Bill, we're giving you a chance to prove that you've really changed. But if you cross the line in any way, I'll be here to make you pay. Got that?"

"'Be here to make you pay'…" Bill repeated as he wrote down Dipper's words in a notepad. "Got it!"

"Good."

"Pleasure doing business with you, Pine Tree."

Bill floated over to the brunet and extended his hand towards him, to which Dipper crossed his arms and gave him a menacing glare. He retracted his arm and shrugged.

"Meh. Maybe later." He clasped his hands together and looked around the room. "So, where do I sleep?"

"Excuse me?" Dipper raised a brow confusedly.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you." Mabel giggled nervously as she ran her fingers through her immense locks. "Bill kind of needs a place to stay, now that he can't go back to the mindscape."

"And you told him he could stay with us, didn't you?" Dipper quickly assumed in a disappointed tone.

"No, but I was thinking we… could?" she beamed hopefully at her twin, who groaned in extreme annoyance.

"Fine… but on one condition. We can't let either Stan or Ford find out about this."

"Why not?"

"Well, from what I read about Bill in the journals, Ford's last encounter with him wasn't a very good one, so I'm sure he won't be happy to know he's living under the same roof as him. And I'm positive Stan won't want to have another mouth to feed."

"Good point." Mabel turned to Bill, who seemed to be examining his nails, even though we was wearing gloves. "You can stay, but we need you to stay on the down low. Think you can do that?"

"Can I ever! No need to worry about me, kids. I'll be practically invisible." He suddenly disappeared and reappeared under Mabel's bed. "I'll just sleep here. No one would suspect that I'm hiding under the bed."

"Well, that's one way to look at it. Come on, Mabel, let's go downstairs for lunch." Dipper said as he walked out the door.

"Want us to bring you back anything?" Mabel asked Bill before following her brother down the stairs.

"Nope. I don't need to eat. I am being of pure energy." Bill replied, making himself glow brightly to further prove his point.

"OK. Later!"

Mabel gently closed the door behind her and proceeded down the stairs to the kitchen, where she could hear her great-uncles fight over which pizza to order.

Bill emerged from under the bed as soon as she left, grinning evilly at the door and rubbing his hands together.

"Oh, sweet Shooting Star…" he snickered to himself. "You are just too easy to manipulate. This is going to be a piece of cake."

He floated towards Mabel's bed and threw himself onto it, nuzzling against the comforter. He felt his foot hit something in the process, and looking down at the end of the bed he saw Mabel's open suitcase, which reminded him that he had offered to help her unpack. With a wave of his index finger, each of the items in the bag flew into their designated drawer, one of them in particular catching his attention. A small pink book was just passing over his head, the words 'Mabel's Diary' written in glittery purple ink on the cover. The demon quickly snatched the book and giggled excitedly as he opened it.

"Now then, my dear…" he hissed as he flipped through the pages of the colorful book. "…let's see how I can win you over."


	3. Let's Go To the Mall (Day 2)

The rest of the day went by pretty uneventfully. After lunch Dipper and Mabel returned to their room and gave Bill the third degree, focusing especially on the matter of his reduced powers. From what they were told, the demon had returned to Gravity Falls not long ago to try and destroy the town, but when he attempted to rupture the water tower to drown everyone, it turned out he couldn't, no matter how hard he tried. From there on out his powers became weaker and weaker, until he was only left with a select few. He decided to adopt a human form and try to blend in as best as he could, which he had been doing until the twins arrived. The loss of his powers had made him realize that maybe being evil wasn't all it was cracked up to be, so as soon as he learned that Dipper and Mabel were returning to Gravity Falls, he decided that he was going to apologize to them and try to get on their good side. And there he was.

Dipper was still not convinced about Bill's whole change of heart. His story had a lot of holes that only he understood, but Mabel was none the wiser. He wanted to unmask the demon, but he knew that there was no changing Mabel's mind. When she set her mind into something, there was no talking her out of it. And she was determined to help Bill as best as she could.

Once the interrogation was over and Mabel was done blabbing to Bill about what she and Dipper had done since the first time they had encountered the dream demon, adding some details that Dipper did not want him knowing about, they were finally able to convince him that they should all go to sleep. After repeatedly emphasizing that they had been up since 4 AM to catch the first bus to Gravity Falls, Bill finally got it into his head that the twins were exhausted and in dire need of resting. Bill insisted that he didn't need to sleep, but not long after the twins had climbed into their beds and turned off the lights, the demon was fast asleep. They figured that, since his powers were reduced and he was now in human form, he was starting to develop some human needs.

When the first rays of morning light entered the dusty old attic, Mabel groaned as she was awaken from her deep slumber, slowly opening her eyes and blinking a few times to adjust her vision. It took her a few seconds to remember where she was, but when she did, a wide smile spread across her face.

"Good morning, Gravity Falls." She whispered drowsily as she closed her eyes again and turned to her left with the intension of falling asleep again, a satisfied sigh escaping her lips.

"Did you know you talk in your sleep?"

Mabel screamed at the top of her lungs and rolled off the bed, pulling the blankets with her in the process and hitting the floor with a thud. She panted and tried to calm her beating heart as she sat up and saw Bill lying down on her bed again, looking down at her with an amused expression.

"Good morning, sunshine." He sang as he winked at her.

"Bill…" she gasped for air as she rose to her feet. "You really gotta stop doing that…"

"But look so pretty when you're asleep." He floated over to her and poked her nose playfully. "I just couldn't help myself."

"Could you two please keep it down over there?" Dipper asked from his side of the room, his voice muffled due to having his pillow over his head. "I'm trying to get some sleep."

"Dipper, it's almost 9 AM." Mabel declared as she checked the time on her phone. "Don't tell me you didn't sleep at all last night."

"How could I?" the brunet tossed his pillow away and sat up, revealing the large bags he had under his eyes. "I don't know how you didn't hear it, but Bill snores! Really loud!"

"Snore, _moi_?!" Bill pointed at himself, looking utterly outraged. "That's preposterous! I would never do such a thing!"

"You sounded like an asthmatic camel! And I had to listen to you all night!"

Bill was about to retort when Mabel slapped a hand over his mouth and ordered both of them to remain silent.

Then they all heard it: someone was running up the stairs.

Mabel quickly shoved Bill onto her bed and climbed up next to him, pulling the covers over the demon. Just as she had concealed him completely, the door slammed open and in came a panting Ford, holding what looked like a plasma gun.

"I heard a scream." He said between breaths as he looked around, pointing the gun everywhere. "What happened? Was it land sharks?"

"N-no, Grunkle Ford, that was just me." Mabel giggled nervously. "I just… uh… saw a spider! Yeah, that's it! I saw a spider."

"Are you sure? Because it sounded like it was something much more frightening than a spider."

"No, no, it was just really ugly and hairy. I just glad I was able to throw it out the window before it reached Dipper, or else it might've thought his face was a possible mate."

"Hey!" Dipper complained, unconsciously concealing his unshaven chin with his hand.

Bill had to cover his mouth to muffle his laughter, and even still he wasn't able to stop a snort from escaping his nose.

Mabel froze when she heard the noise Bill made and saw her great-uncle Ford furrowing his brow as he stared at the very spot where the demon was hidden.

"What have you got under there?" Ford inquired as he pointed at the lump under Mabel's sheets.

"Uhh… nothing?" she replied, smiling uneasily at her six-fingered relative.

Before she could do anything to prevent it, Ford had moved forward and swiftly pulled away the bedsheets, holding the gun up in case anything were to jump up and attack him.

Mabel closed her eyes and held her breath as she prepared herself for what was coming.

"Mabel…"

This was it. She was done for. Ford would never trust her again.

"When did you get a turtle?"

The jig was up. He had found out she was harboring a… turtle?

She quickly opened her eyes and turned to her left, where a brownish-yellow turtle was standing on her mattress, an empty socket where its right eye was supposed to be.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you!" she laughed as she grabbed the turtle by its sides and turned it towards her uncle. "Grunkle Ford, this is my turtle, uh… Billy! Say hi to Grunkle Ford, Billy!"

Mabel gently took hold of the turtle's right paw with the tip of her fingers and shook it up and down, forcing it to wave at her great-uncle.

Ford's expression softened as he lowered the plasma gun and smiled at the small reptile in front of him.

"Why didn't you tell me you had a turtle? I love turtles!" he said as he reached down to pet the animal. "Hello there, little fella."

He had begun to scratch under the turtle's chin when it quickly bent over and bit his finger, latching onto it tightly. Ford screamed and shook his hand to try and get rid of the small animal, but it was really hanging on. It only released the old man's digit when Mabel grabbed hold of it and bopped it on the head.

"No! Bad Billy! What have I told you about attacking family members?" Mabel scolded the reptile before looking up at her great-uncle, who was rubbing his sore finger. "I'm really sorry, Grunkle Ford. Billy must be hungry."

"That's fine. I guess I should've expected that." Ford cleared his throat and adjusted his glasses atop his nose. "That reminds me, I was just about to start making breakfast. Why don't you two get ready and meet me in the kitchen in about fifteen minutes?"

"Will do, Grunkle Ford!" Mabel saluted the old man with a grin.

"Great! I'll see you down there."

The twins beamed at their relative as he left the room and closed the door behind him, their smiles dropping into frowns not a second later as they both turned to Bill, who had turned back into his human form and was laughing hysterically as he held his stomach.

"That's not funny, Bill!" Dipper commented as he climbed out of his bed and walked up to the demon. "What were you thinking?"

"I don't know, but that was priceless!" he snickered as he wiped a tear from his eye. "Old Six Fingers is just as clueless as the first day I met him."

"What exactly happened the first time you met him?"

"That's for me to know and you to NOT find out, kid." Bill stretched his arms out and levitated from the bed, turning towards Mabel with a smirk. "So, what's on the agenda for today, Shooting Star? I thought we could go out for a stroll at the local shopping complex. According to my research, that's where kids your age usually like to hang out."

"You mean the mall?" Mabel asked, to which Bill nodded. "Sure, I guess we could go to the mall today. I actually have some money mom gave me that I want to spend."

"That's the spirit! We'll have a swell time! We could get some clothes and absurdly expensive junk food. I can even get you some of that ice cream you kids love so much!"

"Do you even have any money to buy all that?" Dipper inquired, raising a brow at the demon.

"Pfft… 'money'?" Bill scoffed, placing his hands on his hips. "Who needs money when you have magic?"

Bill suddenly disappeared and reappeared on the other side of the room behind an ice cream counter, wearing a white and pink striped apron with his usual one-eyed triangle symbol printed on it and matching hat on his head. He snapped his fingers and his old golden cane appeared on his hands, which he twirled around theatrically as what sounded like old-timey carnival music played in the background.

"Step right up, ladies and gents, to Uncle Bill's Ice Cream Emporium!" he declared enthusiastically, almost acting like Grunkle Stan when he tried to get people to visit the Mystery Shack. "We have all the flavors you can imagine, and more! We guarantee you will not be disappointed."

With the wave of his hand he made an ice cream cone appear, the ice cream itself being light orange with darker orange stripes around it.

"Would the young lady like a free sample?" he asked, handing Mabel the cone.

"Ooh, don't mind if I do!" Mabel replied as she took the free ice cream sample, her face lighting up as she tasted the treat. "This is delicious! What flavor is it?"

"Kitten flavor."

Mabel quickly dropped the ice cream and spat out the portion in her mouth, trying to wipe her tongue as she groaned in disgust.

"And that's just the tip of the iceberg!" Bill continued, ignoring Mabel's nauseated state. "I have flavors of everything you can think of. The possibilities are endless!"

"What about the regular flavors, like chocolate, vanilla and strawberry?" Dipper stepped in, examining the various flavors on Bill's ice cream counter.

"Nope. I'm fresh out of those." Bill stated, crossing his arms.

"How did you even make these?"

"Sorry, kid, but a good cook never reveals his secrets." He smiled and gave Dipper a tap on the head with his cane.

* * *

Once they cleared out Bill's ice cream counter of horrors and had breakfast, Mabel managed to sneak the demon out and, after much begging and emotional blackmail, borrow Stan's car to drive to the mall. Dipper decided to stay behind and catch up on the sleep he didn't get during the night. He wasn't very happy to let his sister walk around with a dream demon on her own, but he was too exhausted to even think straight, so he just slipped the journal which contained the best spell against him into her purse and told her to use it if she ever felt like she could be in danger.

It was a hot day in Gravity Falls, so it was a great relief to enter the mall and feel the air conditioner blowing down on them. Even Bill had to agree with that fact. Being affected by the heat was new to him, so he felt it more than anyone.

"I don't know how you humans stand this." He commented as he wiped the sweat from his forehead. "If I had known it would feel like this, I wouldn't've opened a hole in the ozone layer to begin with."

The mall was virtually empty at that hour, what with it being a week day, and after walking around for just a couple of minutes Bill seemed to be growing impatient.

"This is a mall? It's so boring!" he grumbled with a frown as he looked around. "Where are all the groups of giggling teenage girls trying on clothes to the sound of trendy pop songs?"

"You've been watching too many 80s teenage movies." Mabel giggled. "This is what the mall is now; a place where people come to buy stuff and occasionally spend the time by watching a movie or eating fatty foods."

"Booooooooooriiiiing…" Bill insisted. "I don't understand what so special about a place like this, anyway."

Mabel poked her chin as she looked around, pondering how she could show the demon that the mall was more than meets the eye. She spotted the sign that pointed towards the food court, an idea flashing in her mind.

"I've got it!" she exclaimed as she grabbed Bill's arm and dragged him towards the ascending escalator. "I know just the thing to lift your spirits!"

They went up to the second floor where the food court was, Bill instantly feeling nauseous with the smell of deep fried food around him. Mabel left him at a table and went to the Mexican Food counter, ordering a taco for her demonic friend. She wasn't hungry herself, having had breakfast not an hour ago, but she figured Bill would like to try human food, even if he didn't really possess the need to eat.

When she returned Bill was looking more bored than ever, his head resting on his left hand as his right hand impatiently tapped its fingers on the washed-out plastic table.

"Here you go." She handed him the Mexican delicacy as she sat down, Bill staring at it with a raised brow.

"What in the world is that?" he asked, pointing at the taco with a slightly freaked-out look on his face.

"It's a taco, a traditional Mexican dish."

"So it's food?"

"Yup."

"You actually eat this?" he took hold of the taco and examined its contents with a queasy expression. "It looks disgusting."

"No, it's delicious! Try it."

Bill took a whiff of the food in his hands and grimaced; it smelt even worse than it looked. He slowly brought the taco to his mouth and took a small bite out of it, spitting it out instantly.

"Urgh, this tastes like pure cholesterol!" he whined, tossing the delicacy into the closest trash bin. "No wonder you people have so many heart attacks. This was specifically made to clog up your arteries!"

Mabel couldn't help but laugh at Bill's comment as she watched him clean his tongue with a toothbrush he had just conjured up. It was amusing to see him so uncomfortable, probably because it felt like payback from his ice cream shenanigan. Whatever the reason, she just couldn't stop chuckling at him.

"Mabel? Is that you?"

The brunette whipped her head around in the direction of the voice that had called her and gasped when she saw two girls who were very familiar to her: one a bespectacled Korean girl with straight black hair and the other a large girl with auburn hair pulled back in a ponytail.

"Candy! Grenda!" Mabel squealed, running up to her childhood friends. They held each other in a tight group hug and hopped in place whilst giggling.

"I knew that was you!" Grenda declared, her voice still low and gruff. "Candy didn't believe me, but I was like 'that's totally her'!"

"I'm sorry, I didn't really recognize you without a sweater on." Candy explained as she adjusted her glasses. "Are you and Dipper back for another summer holiday?"

"Yup! For whole weeks of nonstop fun!" Mabel confirmed. "But what's new with you guys? Are you still dating Marius, Grenda?"

"You bet I am! I just got back from Austria, where I spent a week with him at his family's estate." She pulled out her wallet and showed Mabel a photo of her and Marius horseback riding by the beach. "The guy can't keep his hands off me, but I'm not complaining."

"That's so romantic! And what about you, Candy? Any hotties in your life?" Mabel playfully nudged her Korean friend.

"Not yet, but I am perfecting one." She retrieved a blueprint from her purse and unrolled for Mabel to see. On it was drawn what seemed to be a robot prototype. "I call it DateBot 3000. If all goes according to my calculations, it will be ready within three days."

"Cool, a robot boyfriend! They should really make more of those." Mabel stated with a slight pout.

"They should, but making good-looking robots is still a work in development. I wish I could make mine look as good as that guy you're with." Candy pointed to the table behind Mabel.

"Yeah, who is that hunky dreamboat? Hubba hubba!" Grenda said, looking over Mabel's shoulder.

Mabel followed her gazes involuntarily to see Bill jadedly trying to balance his cane on the palm of his hand.

"Is he your boyfriend, Mabel?" Candy asked.

"W-what?!" Mabel stuttered as she quickly turned back around, her cheeks reddening. "N-no, no… Bill's j-just –"

"You bet your sweet patootie I am."

Mabel jumped with a yelp when Bill suddenly appeared by her side, wrapping an arm around her shoulders as he flashed a grin at the other two girls. Had he teleported or did he just sneak up on her again?

Candy and Grenda gasped and oohed in unison, their eyes as wide as saucers.

"What are you doing?" Mabel whispered angrily into Bill's hear.

"Play along." He replied.

"Holy Chihuahua, you're hot!" Grenda remarked, her smile as wide as it could get. "Are you a model?"

"As a matter of fact I am." Bill responded, sensually flicking his hair away from his face. "A European model."

"Oh my GOSH! A European model! That's the best kind of model!"

"Calm down, Grenda." Candy laughed nervously, patting her large friend's arm without taking her eyes off the blond man in front of her. "Don't forget, you have a boyfriend. Who's also European."

"Yeah, but he's not a model!"

"So how did you two meet?"

"I, uh…" Mabel stammered, her blush increasing.

"Oh, we met a few months ago." Bill quickly answered. "I was touring America for Spring Fashion Week and Mabel just happened to be at one of my shows. And as soon as I saw this beautiful face…" he gently took hold of Mabel's chin and lifted her head towards his, gazing lovingly into her eyes. "…I just knew I had to make her mine."

Mabel's face was now beat red as she looked into Bill's dark eyes, her friends releasing a long 'awww' in front of them. She didn't exactly know why, but for some reason she was enjoying the way he was acting towards her. Bill was looking at her with such love in his eyes; it was mind-numbing. She knew he was faking it, but it felt so right…

She felt her insides turn in a way she hadn't felt that in a long time. Could she be developing feelings towards the blond dream demon? No, that couldn't be possible… could it?

"You're so lucky, Mabel." Candy sighed.

"She is indeed." Bill agreed, reaching down to grab Mabel's hand. "Now if you'll excuse us, I promised my lady we would go see a movie."

"Erm, yeah, right. A movie." Mabel chuckled as she awoke from her trance and Bill started to pull her away. "I'll see you girls later."

"Call us when you get home!" Candy called out. "We want to know all the juicy deets!"

"And send us picture of him when he's sleeping!" Grenda shouted, a little louder than she should have.

After walking with Bill for a few steps, Mabel turned around to see if her friends were still there, and once she was sure they weren't looking, she quickly yanked her hand away from Bill's grasp and punched his arm as hard as she could, making him flinch.

"What was that for?" Bill whimpered as he rubbed his arm.

"That's what I'd like to know." Mabel retorted angrily. "Did you really have to lie to my friends like that?"

"Oh please, they had it coming." He crossed his arms and gave her a smirk. "And admit it, you enjoyed that."

"What, being dishonest?"

"No. Feeling like you were better than them. And don't try to deny it. I can see right through you."

"Well…" a smile unwillingly crept through her face. "Maybe just a little. Just don't do that ever again, OK?"

"Duly noted, madam." He gallantly tipped his hat at her. "So what else should we do in this endless pit of misery you humans call the 'mall'?" he asked with a frown, making air quotes around the word 'mall'.

"Well, I do believe you were going to treat me to a movie."

"You do realize that was part of the act, right?"

"I do, but you owe me for what you just did. We are going to see a movie."

"Fine…" Bill sighed exasperatedly and rolled his eyes.

Luckily for him, there were no chick flicks or rom coms showing at that moment, knowing that would've been Mabel's obvious first choice, so she settled for a comedy about a rich ninja and a rock star that got together after foiling a bank robbery to prove their theory of an alternate dimension ruled by giant monsters. The plot was terrible, but everyone in the audience was laughing their heads off as soon as the movie began. Even Bill, who had been dragged against his will onto his seat, was banging his fist against his armrest as he guffawed uncontrollably.

"It's funny because it's true!" he laughed almost breathlessly. "There actually is a dimension populated by giant monsters!"

Mabel didn't know what was making her laugh more, the movie itself or Bill's reaction to it. It was amusing to see what used to be an evil dream demon that tried to control the universe and brought so much harm to her family act like that.

Bill had noticed she was looking at him, and just as she turned her focus back to the movie, an idea crossed his mind. He remembered a move that he had seen somewhere and that was guaranteed to work with the females of the human race and decided this was the perfect opportunity to use it. He casually yawned and stretched his arms upwards, his left arm descending behind Mabel's head and resting over her shoulders.

Mabel stiffened in her seat as she felt Bill's arm around her, her cheeks reddening instantly. She gazed at him from the corner of her eye and saw him grinning at her, which made her blush even more. She quickly looked away from him, trying to concentrate on the movie she was supposed to be watching, but her mind was going a mile a minute. Why was Bill doing that? Did he like her? Was he trying to put the moves on her?

As much as it pained her to admit it, she liked the attention she was receiving from the blond demon. Truth be told, she hadn't had a boyfriend in a long time, not since that Italian foreign exchange student that had had classes with her during her Junior year. It had broken her heart to find out she wasn't the only girl he was dating at the time, and for a while she felt like she could never love again. And now this was happening.

She almost jumped out of her seat when she heard Bill laughing at something that happened in the movie. She shook her head to try and rid herself from her thoughts as she looked up at the demon, her jaw dropping when she saw he was holding up a video camera and pointing it up at the screen in front of them.

"Bill, what're you doing?" she whispered, looking around to see if anyone else had noticed him. "You can't film the movie! You'll get us into trouble!"

"Calm down, Shooting Star." He said as he patted her head a little too calmly. "Everybody does it and no one ever gets caught."

"Hey, you!"

They froze as a flashlight shone over them and saw a very displeased female usher coming down the stairs towards them.

"Well, time to go." Bill stated as he wrapped an arm around Mabel's waist and snapped his fingers, making them vanish into thin air and leaving the usher and the rest of the audience that had turned around to look at them stunned and confused.

They reappeared not a second later inside Stan's car, Mabel in the driver's seat and Bill in the passenger's seat next to her. The brunette seemed to be shocked and speechless, her eyes wide as she gazed into the distance. Bill, on the other hand, simply wiped his forehead and sighed in relief.

"That was close." He commented as he looked over at Mabel, who remained irresponsive. "OK, I know you're probably mad at me, and I probably deserve that, but let me just say –"

"That was awesome!"

He quickly turned his head to face the teenager, who now had one of the biggest grins he had ever seen spread across her face.

"Say what?" he raised a brow confusedly.

"I've never had such an amazing experience in my life!" she declared, her eyes twinkling with excitement. "I had no idea being able to teleport was so cool! Does it always feel like that?"

"Pretty much." He replied, relieved to see she wasn't mad. "I'm just glad the car was so close, or else we would've had to make a run for it. I can't teleport across long distances with another person."

"Well, it was really something." She giggled, her gaze falling upon the car's clock. "We should get back. Grunkle Stan will be starting lunch soon."

She turned the ignition key, the engine coming to life with a roar and causing the whole vehicle to tremble. She backed the car out of the parking lot and made a turn into the road that would take them back to the Mystery Shack. As she drove her mind involuntarily went back to her previous thoughts. What if Bill really was interested in her and was trying to make a move? She couldn't know for sure; he could just be messing with her head, which would be something she would've expected from him. But what if he wasn't? It was all so confusing…

Bill smiled to himself; he knew what she was thinking, and it pleased him. It was all going according to his plan. It wouldn't be long now until she fell head over heels for him. He just had to make the most out the five days he had left.


	4. Failure With a Side of Caffeine (Day 3)

"Shooting Staaaar… wakey wakey…"

Mabel frowned as she was awaken by someone repeatedly poking her nose and whispering into her ear. When her eyes finally fluttered open, the first thing she saw was Bill's face just an inch or two away from hers, grinning widely at her.

"Hey Bill…" she murmured as she sat up and rubbed her eyes. "What's up?"

"I made breakfast!"

As Bill snapped his fingers, a wooden breakfast tray appeared over her head and slowly lowered itself onto her lap.

Mabel gasped when she saw the small banquet in front of her. There a was large stack of pancakes covered in maple syrup, two slices of toast with butter, a bowl of mixed fruits and a glass of orange juice.

"Did you make all this yourself?" Mabel inquired when she finally stopped staring at the food.

"Well, I made it appear, so technically yes." He crossed his arms and smirked triumphantly. "Yes I did."

"Well, I really appreciate the gesture, but…" Mabel sighed before pushing the tray off of her. "…I can't eat this."

"What? Why?" Bill panicked, hovering over the bed. "Are you allergic to gluten? I knew I should've asked first…"

"No, I'm not allergic to gluten. It's just that, if I eat this and say no to the breakfast I was supposed to have downstairs, the Grunkles might get suspicious. Especially Grunkle Ford."

"Oh yeah, I guess that makes sense." He snapped his fingers again and the tray disappeared. "I would eat it myself, but I'm still trying to get the taste of yesterday's taco out of my mouth."

They heard rustling coming from the other side of the room and turned around in time to see Dipper roll over on his bed and release a loud yawn as he tried to push himself up. The boy cracked his back and pulled out an earplug from inside of each ear.

"Wow, I can't believe how well I slept. I sure am glad I bought these." He said as he slipped the earplugs under his pillow. "I didn't hear a thing."

"Morning, bro bro." Mabel gave him a cheeky smile. "How are you feeling this morning?"

"Like a new man." Dipper answered as he pulled the covers off of himself. "Nothing like a little beauty sleep to get you going again."

"Yeah… beauty sleep…" Bill snickered, biting his lip.

Dipper frowned; Bill and Mabel were acting very strange. They seemed to be trying their hardest to hold their laughter and wouldn't stop staring at him with wide grins plastered across their faces. Something told him they either had done something or were planning to do something to him.

"Alright, what's going on?" he gave them a questionable look and placed his hands on his hips.

"Nothing…" Mabel giggled, covering her mouth with her hands to avoid bursting into laughter.

"Bill?"

"Oh, I don't know…" he said in an amused tone as he conjured a hand-held mirror and handed it to the boy. "Why don't you see for yourself?"

Dipper scowled as soon as he grabbed the mirror's handle and saw his reflection, his sister and her demonic new friend exploding with laughter when they saw his reaction.

After getting home and having lunch, which had been forgotten by Grunkle Stan at the stove and consequently was served burnt, Mabel locked herself in the attic, where she spent the rest of the afternoon chatting with Bill and asking him about his abilities and his past experiences. Being almost as old as time itself, he had quite a collection of stories about what he had seen and done throughout the ages. And since Dipper was still asleep and looked like he wasn't going to be waking up very soon, they had plenty of time to do whatever they wanted. They spent all day talking away about the most random topics. Mabel was so exhausted when night came that she blacked out as soon as her head hit her pillow and slept through the night uninterrupted.

But not before she and Bill took the liberty to write and draw on Dipper's face with a black marker while he was asleep.

Besides the usual curled moustache over his upper lip, they had drawn a circle around his right eye with a line making a curve down his cheek next to the words 'Like a Sir' written in small rounded letters, which he quickly identified as being Mabel's handwriting. Under that she had written 'Insert Kiss Here', whilst he had 'Insert Punch Here' sloppily written in large letters on his left cheek, instantly assuming that had been Bill's doing. His birthmark had been turned into a doodle of a Brachiosaurus, he had a smiley face on his nose and farting butt on his chin.

"Real mature, you guys." He commented drily as the two pranksters continued to chuckle, running a hand over his face in an attempt to wipe the black ink. "This better not be permanent."

"KIDS, SOOS JUST CALLED IN SICK SO I NEED ONE OF YOU TO COVER HIS SHIFT THIS MORNING!" they heard Grunkle Stan shout from downstairs, the wooden floor vibrating with his every word.

"Great, just what I needed." Dipper groaned as he turned to his sister. "You mind taking over the first half of Soos' shift until I wash all of this off of my face?"

"Sure thing, broseph." Mabel smiled and gave him a thumbs-up with a giggle. "Good luck with that."

Dipper sighed exasperatedly and headed down the stairs towards the bathroom. Bill lied down on Mabel's bed wiggling his legs as he stabbed the space between his fingers back and forth with a knife as fast as he could, an entertained look on his face as he did so.

"Do you mind waiting here for a few hours while work in the gift shop, Bill?" Mabel asked as she pulled out a royal-blue tank top with a white crescent moon and a few stars on the front from her shirt drawer.

"Not at all." He replied, looking up from his hand without stopping his knife game. "I'll just find some way to entertain myself while you're gone."

"Uh… you might wanna be careful with that." She pointed uneasily at his hand.

"Don't worry, I know what I'm – "

He fell silent when he felt the knife's sharp blade penetrate the back of his hand. Mabel covered her mouth as he brought his hand up to inspect it, the knife standing perfectly upright.

"Would you look at that." He said with a chuckle.

"Doesn't that hurt?"

"Not really. Just burns a little." He yanked the knife from his hand and flung it behind his back, the sharp object disappearing in a puff of smoke. "I can't really get hurt. I'm a magical being, remember?"

"Oh yeah…" she retrieved a pair of jean shorts from another drawer and headed towards the door. "I'll be back once my shift is over."

She closed the door behind her and walked down the stairs, hoping Dipper was done washing himself so she could take a shower and get dressed.

Bill sat up on the girl's bed as soon as she was gone, grinning wickedly to himself as he stretched his arms forward and cracked his knuckles.

"Time to bring out the big guns."

* * *

His plan was simple, and pretty much flawless. He had seen a good number of people doing it before, both in movies and real life, and it always worked for them. All he had to do was shower Mabel with gifts and charm her as best as he could, and she would be all over him. He had studied her diary thoroughly, so he knew exactly what she liked. This was going to be a piece of cake.

Or so he thought.

He peeked at her from outside through the gift shop's window. She was tending to a couple of tourists who wanted to buy a snow globe and a few t-shirts, happily chatting with them as she typed the prices on the cash register.

"So sweet and innocent..." He whispered, a wide smirk spreading across his face. "Just how I like them."

He snapped his fingers and large bouquet of roses appeared in his hands. They were about a hundred and were wrapped with a shiny pink wrapping paper and tied together with a red bow. There was no way she would be able to resist a gift like that.

As soon as the tourists were gone, Bill knocked on the window to get Mabel's attention, hiding the flowers behind his back. Her smile was replaced by a look of shock when she saw the demon peering at her from outside the shop. She quickly walked up to the window pulled it open.

"Bill, what're you doing here?" she whispered, checking if anybody was around. "The Grunkles could show up any minute."

"I know, but I just wanted to give you a little something." He closed his eyes as he pulled the bouquet from behind him and presented it to her. "Ta-dah!"

"Uh… Bill?"

"Yes?"

"What is that?"

Bill's eyes snapped open and he looked down, his heart sinking when he saw the bouquet was now just a couple of broken stems and only a tiny bit of wrapping paper with some bite marks on it.

"What the – "

He trailed off when he heard bleating behind him and turned around to see Gompers chewing on the rest of the roses that were missing. He felt his blood boil as he glared down at the brown goat, clenching his fists and gritting his teeth in anger.

"You stupid mammal! I'll end you!" he shouted as he started chasing after Gompers, who ran terrified into the woods. "Get back here! I'll turn you into hot dogs!"

Mabel watched the blond demon chase the goat through the trees, throwing random objects he would conjure up and shouting profanities at the poor animal. Once they disappeared into the dense woods, she shrugged and decided to get back to work, closing the window and heading back towards the checkout counter.

After making sure the goat was the furthest away from the Shack as possible and trapping its head inside a large glass bottle, Bill returned to the gift shop and turned himself into a spider so he could observe Mabel's every move up close. He sat on the cash register as he watched her doodling happily on a notebook as she hummed a cheery tune, not a customer or other living soul in sight.

"There must be a way to win you over." He said to himself, rubbing his chin with one of his eight legs as he contemplated his options. "I just need to pick the right moment…"

Mabel pulled out a plastic bottle from behind the counter and drank some water from it, afterwards setting it back down and heading towards the door marked 'Employees Only'.

"Bathroom break!" she declared right before entering the other room.

Just then an idea popped into Bill's head. He remembered reading in the brunette's journal about how much she liked candy and sugar in general, so he figured that offering her some of the aforementioned treats could work. He clapped the tips of his front legs together and a red heart-shaped box of chocolates appeared on top of the counter, a small note saying 'For Mabel' taped to the lid.

Bill giggled giddily, eyeing the door through which Mabel had exited expectantly. He quickly turned around as he heard the main entrance to the gift shop open with a ring of the bell above it and saw an annoyed-looking Stan come in with a rolled-up newspaper under his arm.

"Ugh, I've got the weirdest taste in my mouth." He grumbled, opening and closing his mouth as if he was trying to cleanse his tongue. "I shouldn't've drank that week-old orange juice."

He stopped when he noticed the box of chocolates on top of the checkout counter and grinned.

"Oh boy, chocolates!" he exclaimed happily, pulling off the lid without even noticing the note on it and munching on the sweets happily.

Bill had to suppress every urge in his body to end the old man there and then. Besides not wanting to cause a scandal in the limited time he was there, he knew when and how Stanley Pines was going to die. And it would be far more pleasant to wait and see him suffer in agony when his time came.

"Curses! Darn it all!" he complained silently, not wanting to be spotted, and jumped up and down in frustration.

That's when Grunkle Stan abruptly stopped chewing the chocolates in his mouth as he looked over at the cash register.

"AHHH! Spider!" he screamed and began swatting at Bill with the newspaper he had brought in, the demon having to run for his life and narrowly avoiding each of the old man's blows. "I won't let you fool me again!"

By the time he was finally able to lose Stan, he was exhausted and almost out of ideas. It seemed like everyone was determined to foil his plans at all cost, and he was getting sick of it. He was going to try one last time. If this also failed, he was just going to call it a day.

He stood outside the entrance to the gift shop as he snapped his fingers, a formally-dressed string quartet appearing with their instruments in hand and ready to start playing. He waved his hand over himself and his clothes changed into the ones of an orchestra conductor, complete with a baton and a wooden podium, on which was the sheet music to Mabel's favorite song. As soon as he was sure she was coming out, he would give the signal for the quartet to begin playing.

Gazing at the window he saw the girl was walking towards the door, so he immediately tapped his baton on the podium and stood up straight as he started waving the long stick-like object, the string instruments coming to life and creating a beautiful harmony of sound between them. He turned around slightly to give Mabel a grin, which instantly turned into a frown when he saw she was nowhere in sight. Instead he realized he had been unknowingly playing for Deputy Durland and Sheriff Blubs.

He dropped his arms and the quartet ceased their playing as the two policemen stared at him, each of them holding a Mystery Shack bag. Durland dropped his bags and wrapped his arms around his superior, a big smile spreading across his face.

"Oh Blubs, you did remember my birthday after all!" he exclaimed, seemingly on the verge of tears.

"Uh… yeah, sure…" Blubs chuckled nervously as he patted his partner's back. "How could I possibly forget?"

Bill's eye twitched as he felt himself hit his limit, snapping the baton in two and throwing it onto the ground. He made the string quartet disappear in a sea of blue flames and teleported himself back into the twin's room, collapsing face-first onto Mabel's bed and growling loudly into her pillow.

"This is going to be harder than I thought…" he mumbled into the pillow's soft fabric, releasing a frustrated sigh.

"Bill?"

He raised his head in time to see Mabel peeking into the room from the doorway, looking concerned and a bit weirded-out at the same time.

"Are you OK?" she asked as she entered the room. "You've been acting really weird today."

"It's not easy to explain, so I'd rather not." He declared as he sat up on her bed. "How come you're not working?"

"Dipper took over. Turns out he really was able to wash all that ink from his face." She giggled, remembering what she and the demon had done to him while he slept. "So I've got the rest of the day off. What do you feel like doing? I don't know about you, but I woke up with the weirdest craving to go bike riding."

"Well, I guess I could tag along and watch you." He said as he hovered over her bed and lied down in midair with his hands under his head and his legs crossed. "I personally never really understood your kind's fascination with that dull two-wheeled vehicle. You have to power it yourselves. Seems more like work than fun to me."

"How can you say that? Have you ever even ridden a bike before?"

"What for? I never learned how to do it in the first place."

Mabel let out a long loud gasp, her eyes widening with the demon's words.

"You don't know how to ride a bike?" she questioned in her state of astonishment, her hands pressed against her cheeks.

"Nope." He replied. "Why should I? It's not like I'll need to use – "

He silenced himself when Mabel pulled him down by his arm, dragging him out of the room against his will with a look of determination on her face.

"What're you doing?" he inquired, surprised by her harsh actions. "Where are you taking me?"

"I'm going to teach you how to ride a bike. And you're going to like it."

* * *

"OK, one… two… three!"

Bill quickly took his feet off the ground and tried to press them against the pedals, unfortunately missing them and falling to the right with the bike.

He groaned loudly and punched the ground in frustration, Mabel sighing disappointedly as she watch his rage fit. For the last thirty minutes she had been trying to teach the dream demon how to ride a bike, but was failing miserably. Bill had terrible balance, surprisingly enough, and as much as he tried, he couldn't stay on the bike for more than five seconds without falling down. She had tried every approach possible, but nothing worked.

"Stupid piece of junk!" Bill yelled as he kicked the bike. "I hate you!"

"I don't get it. You're a demon. You can do anything." Mabel said as she picked up the bike from the floor, wiping some dust from the seat and the handlebars. "How are you not able to do something as simple as ride a bike?"

"How should I know? I have no idea how my powers work. I just think about what I want to do and I do it. Do I want a sandwich? BAM!" he snapped his fingers and a ham sandwich appeared in his hands, which he quickly disposed of. "Do I want to be somewhere else? BAM!" he disappeared and reappeared on Mabel's right side. "Do I want to create a shark tornado? BA- "

"OK, I get it!" Mabel giggled nervously as she clutched Bill's arms to prevent him from going any further. "No sharks, please."

"I guess you're right. Those three times were more than enough." He brushed her hands away and crossed his arms. "Can we do something else now?"

"No. I told you I was going to teach you how to ride a bike and I will not rest until I do so. I will not be a failure as a teacher."

Bill sighed and floated back onto the bike, grasping the handlebars as he awaited Mabel's orders. The brunette took a few steps back, giving him a safe distance to work with.

"OK, this time try to putting one foot on the pedal and only go for the other one when I tell you." She instructed, the demon doing as she said. "Good. Now, on the count of three, I want to slowly pedal your way towards me. One, two… three!"

Bill took his free foot to the remaining pedal and pushed forward. The bike wobbled as it slowly moved forward, but it was staying up. Upon the realization that he hadn't hit the floor yet, Bill started laughing victoriously as he gently kept going.

"I'm doing it!" he happily exclaimed, starting to pick up some speed. "I'm really doing it!"

"Yeah, I knew you could do it!" Mabel punched the air in celebration. "My teaching success record is saved!"

Bill kept chuckling excitedly as he started pedaling even faster. Mabel backed away a few more steps impulsively, seeing as the demon was approaching her quite rapidly.

"OK Bill, you can stop now." She advised him, but he just kept going. "Bill, stop!"

"I can't!" he cackled almost breathlessly. "I don't know how!"

"The hand brakes, use the handbrakes!" Mabel screamed, the blond now only a couple of feet away from him.

She tried to turn away and run, but before she had a chance, she felt both the bike and Bill collide with her. When she opened her eyes the demon was lying on top of her, his face mere inches away from hers. He gave her a devious grin when he saw her cheeks turn a deep shade of crimson.

"Hey there." He whispered as he looked into her big brown eyes. "Nice _running_ into you."

"Shut up." She snorted, pushing him away.

"Well, I officially give up." He rose to his feet, dusting himself off and adjusting his top hat atop his head. "This was a useless endeavor to begin with."

"I guess I can't teach you how to ride a bike." She sighed in defeat, her shoulders slumping forward with sadness. "I guess I'm not a good teacher, after all."

Bill was patting away some more dust from his sleeve when he noticed Mabel's sulking form. For some reason he felt sorry for the girl. He couldn't really understand why, but he didn't like seeing her like that. He felt like he should do something about it, especially because he could never win her over when she was in a bad mood.

"Hey, don't sweat it, kid." He slipped an arm around her shoulders, giving them a playful squeeze. "So what if I can't learn how to ride a bike? There's lots of things I can't do! Like… Uh… Well, I can't really remember anything right now… That's it! I can't remember anything I can't do! See? I told you."

Mabel couldn't help but giggle at Bill's silliness. He laughed along; he discovered he really enjoyed her laugh.

"How about you show me how you do it? Maybe then I'll learn better."

"OK." She chortled, brushing his arm off of her. "Watch and learn, you big goober."

Mabel got on her bike and started pedaling around the backyard, Bill watching her intently. She made it look so easy. He was starting to feel ashamed for not knowing how to do something that seemed so simple.

"See? It's easy!" she panted as she turned to where Bill was, surprised to see he wasn't there anymore. "Bill?"

"YEE-HAW!"

Mabel jumped both from the screech she heard and from feeling an arm wrap tightly around her waist. Turning her head around, she saw Bill sitting on the bike's seat, which he clearly had made longer with his magic, holding onto her as he twirled a black Stetson over his head.

"Hi-yo Silver, AWAAAAY!" he yelled enthusiastically, his grin as wide as it could get.

"What're you doing back there?" Mabel asked, turning back around to see where she was going and to hide the blush she had from feeling him so close to her.

"I figured this would be a better way to observe you. Now let's ride, Shooting Star!"

After circling the Mystery Shack a couple of time, Mabel took the road into town and showed Bill every aspect of Gravity Falls that he hadn't seen up close yet. They passed the police station, the statue of Gravity Falls' supposed founder Nathaniel Northwest, Barrels & Crates Incorporated, the grocery store and number of other buildings that they both knew very well.

After pedaling around town for about twenty minutes, Mabel's legs were starting to give up on her and she was starting to feel dehydrated.

"I need a breather." She commented as she pulled up in front of Greasy's Diner.

She chained the bike to a lamppost and enter the log-shaped restaurant with Bill following close behind. He crinkled his nose as soon as he set foot inside the diner, the smell of overused frying oil and old people washing over him.

"Yurgh, this place reeks!" he complained, covering his nose with his hands. "Why does a place like this exist?"

"Don't worry, we'll be out of here in no time. I just need a coffee." She pointed towards an empty booth next to the window. "Go sit over there. I'll be right back."

Bill dragged himself to where she had pointed out and plopped himself down on one of the chairs. He watched as Mabel talked to one of the waitresses about her order. The waitress was an old woman with a dirty apron and only one open eye. She seemed dimwitted and sluggish, but Bill couldn't help but feel compassionate about her eye situation. He assumed she and the girl must've met before, seeing as they looked rather chummy and seemed to be talking about everything except what she wanted to order.

Bill's gazed drifted away from the two females and looked around the dirty restaurant, his sight falling upon a girl who seemed to be around Mabel's age at the next booth. She had long blonde hair and quite a lot of makeup on, although it seemed to work on her, and was glaring seductively at him. When she noticed he was looking at her, she wiggled her fingers at him and gave him a wink. Bill cocked a brow in wonder, when suddenly an idea popped into his head. There was still one thing he hadn't tried, and if that didn't work he didn't know what would.

He flashed her his best smile and wiggled his eyebrows at her, to which the girl giggled. He kept grinning at her when he noticed Mabel turning away from the counter with a white mug in her hands and froze when she saw the blonde girl staring at him. His grin widened; his plan was working perfectly. Any minute now she would –

"Pacifica?" Mabel squealed happily at the girl, who turned her attention to her and smiled.

"Mabel Pines!" the blonde exclaimed, quickly standing up. "Aren't you a sight for sore eyes! I can't believe I didn't see you come in! You look great!"

"So do you!" Mabel replied, giving her friend a tight hug.

Bill slapped his hand against his forehead. Of all the females he could try to hit on to make Mabel jealous, why did it have to be one of her friends?

"What're you doing here?" asked the brunette, barely able to contain her excitement.

"I just stopped by for a smoothie on my way home." She waggled the plastic cup in her hand to prove her point. "This place may be a dump, but they make one heck of a mango smoothie. And apparently it's where all the hotties come to hang out."

"Really?" Mabel grinned and looked around expectantly. "I don't see any hotties."

Pacifica grabbed Mabel's chin and turned her in Bill's direction, the demon clicking his tongue and pointing at them in a sly manner.

Mabel's smile fell into a frown. For some reason, the thought of Bill hitting on Pacifica and vice-versa seemed to disturb her. But why?

"Isn't he a hunk?" Pacifica whispered, waving at the blond.

"Yeah, he's really… something." Mabel cleared her throat, thinking of ways to divert her friend from the topic at hand. "So, what have you been up to?"

"Well, I just got into law school." She flipped her bangs out of her eyes as Mabel stared at her in awe.

"You got into law school?! That's so awesome! I had no idea you wanted to be a lawyer!"

"Neither did I, but after I went against my parents to do what was right all those years ago, it made me realize I wanted rid the world of injustice!" she professed a little too angrily, composing herself right away and looking around the diner. "That reminds me, where's your brother?"

"He's back at the Shack working in the gift shop."

"Oh." She twirled her hair with her fingers, a slight blush appearing on her face. "How is he?"

"Fine, why?"

"No reason. Just checking." Pacifica adverted her gaze, unsure where to look.

Mabel narrowed her eyes and inched closer to Pacifica, smiling knowingly at her.

"You like Dipper, don't you?" she inquired, noticing how the redness on the blonde's cheeks increased when she said that.

"Wha-what? That's… that's ridiculous!" she giggled anxiously, pulling her cell phone from her purse and glancing at the screen. "Oh my, look at the time! I'm late for a mani-pedi. It was really nice seeing you again, Mabel. Let's keep in touch."

She passed the brunette and headed towards the door, ignoring Bill as she had now forgotten completely about him.

"He's still single, you know?"

Pacifica froze whilst reaching for the doorknob and turned back around to see Mabel giving her a cheeky smile. The blonde's blush was now a deep shade of red and her eyes were wide open as she stared at the brunette. That girl knew a lot more than she should.

"Oh… r-really?" she stuttered, her hand now resting on the doorknob, nervously fumbling it. "I, um… that's… I really have to go. I'll call you later."

She grasped the doorknob firmly and opened the door, slamming it as she exited. Mabel kept smirking to herself as she sat across from Bill, who stared at the door confusedly.

"What just happened?" he asked after a few seconds.

"It's a long story." Mabel replied as she sipped her coffee. "My brother saved her a few years ago and she's been crushing pretty hard on him ever since. She may insist on denying it, but there's no fooling me."

"Romantic conflicts are hilarious." Bill chuckled.

"Hey, Bill?"

"Yeah?"

"Why were you flirting with Pacifica?"

A devilish smile appeared on Bill's face. This was his chance to play with Mabel's feelings like he had planned all along.

"Maaaaybe…" he hinted, propping his head on his hands. "Why? Does that bother you?"

"What?!" Mabel squealed embarrassedly, her face turning pink. "W-why would that bother me? That's just stupid!" she crossed her arms and looked away.

"You do realize your acting just like your friend did a minute ago, right?"

Mabel's eyes widened and she looked back at the demon, who was smiling at her exactly like she had smiled at Pacifica before she left.

Her cheeks were unbearably warm by that point. Why was she bothered by that, really? Was she really starting to develop feelings towards Bill? Her mind told her she was just being ridiculous, but her heart and her gut said otherwise.

That was not good.

"Well… well… your face is broken!" she blurted out, pointing a finger at him.

"Ouch, what a comeback." He commented sarcastically. "How long did it take you to come up with that?"

Mabel huffed and took another sip from her mug, rolling her eyes at the demon. She noticed him raising a brow at her and staring at her with a quizzical expression, almost as if he didn't understand what she was doing or why she was doing it.

"What?" she asked after gulping down her hot beverage.

"I never really understood what was so special about that drink." He pointed at the mug. "It looks like raw sewage."

"It gives us the energy we need to go about our days. And it's delicious." She handed him the mug with a smile. "Here, try some."

Bill reluctantly took hold of the mug with fearful look on his face. He stared at the brown drink for a few seconds, then brought it up to his face and took a whiff. He smiled; turned out he enjoyed the drink's aroma. It was really pleasant. Finally, he slowly took his lips to the edge of the mug and tipped it into his mouth. His eyes widened as soon as the liquid hit his tongue.

"Wow, this is great!" he exclaimed, downing the entire beverage in one gulp. "I've never tasted anything this great in all my years of existence!"

"Told you. Just make sure you don't have too much at once. The first time I had coffee I was up all – " Mabel trailed off when she noticed Bill wasn't at the table anymore.

"Hey, old hag!"

Mabel's head quickly turned to her right, where Bill stood in front of Lazy Susan, shaking like a massage chair as he leaned over the counter with the widest grin she had ever seen.

"Give me five mugs of coffee." He practically begged. "And keep 'em coming!"

Mabel suddenly felt very uneasy. If someone like Bill Cipher had too much coffee, that could only lead to one thing.

"Oh no."

* * *

"1912: I pushed an iceberg in the Titanic's way! 1914: I made a deal with Gavrilo Princip. He wanted to become a great ruler, so I possessed his body, killed Archduke Ferdinand and started World War I! WHOO!"

Dipper and Mabel couldn't take it anymore. Bill had consumed so much coffee that he had been listing all the deaths and tragedies he had caused throughout the years since they got home. He was impossible to stop. All the caffeine in his system made him jump around incessantly, even going to the point to walk on the walls and the ceiling.

It was now 2 AM and neither of the twins had had a bit of sleep. It seemed almost impossible that he had started close to noon and was still describing what he had done during the twentieth century.

"I can't believe you let him have coffee." Dipper scolded his sister as he sat on his bed with his hands over his ears. "How many cups did he have, exactly?"

"I'm not sure." Mabel replied, pressing her pillow over her head. "I lost count after the seventh one."

"1919: I gave Woodrow Wilson a stroke. Served him right for beating me at chess!" Bill laughed hysterically as he did a backflip.

"Not even my earplugs can block this out." Dipper sighed and slid off of his bed. "Come on, Mabel. Let's go get a snack or something.

They headed down the stairs towards the kitchen while Bill kept rambling on. They were just glad neither of the Grunkles could hear him all the way up in the attic.

Mabel pulled out from the fridge a slice of chocolate cake that seemed to have been forgotten from when they arrived two days ago, while Dipper just poured himself a glass of milk. When he closed the refrigerator door and turned around, he was surprised to see that Mabel was just poking her cake slice with her fork, looking like she was lost in thought.

"Mabel, are you feeling alright?" he inquired as she took a seat next to her. "You've never gone thirty seconds without scarfing down your food in almost one bite."

"I just got a lot in my mind." she answered, taking a small piece of cake to her mouth.

"You wanna talk about it?"

"I guess I should…" she sighed and placed her fork down, looking into her brother's eyes. "I think Bill's trying to put the moves on me."

Dipper was in the middle of sipping his milk when he heard what his sister had said, choking on the white liquid and having to pat his chest to be able to breathe again.

"What?! Are you… are you serious?" he coughed and gasped for air.

"He's been doing it since yesterday, when I took him to the mall. He pretended to be my boyfriend in front of Candy and Grenda and while we were at the movies he did that old yawn trick and wrapped an arm around me."

"Looks like Bill's being doing some research…" Dipper commented as he rubbed his chin. "You better be careful, Mabel. He must be up to something. Bill would never be able to love anyone but himself, so he must be planning to use you for something."

"I know, but…" she sighed again, looking down at her feet. "Why does it feel so right?"

"That's probably because you haven't had a boyfriend in a while and you feel lonely. Don't let your feelings get the best of you, Mabel."

"But, and this is only a wild possibility, what if he actually, you know…" she shyly looked up at her brother, her cheeks now a mild shade of pink. "…likes me?"

"You can't be serious! This is Bill we're talking about! Love is the one emotion he could never feel. Ever!" Dipper gulped down the rest of his milk and slammed his glass on the table. "Whatever you do, you can't let him fool you."

"Yeah, you're probably right. Silly me, thinking Bill could actually feel something towards me." She giggled, taking the entire slice of cake into her mouth. "That's sounds so stupid now that I say it out loud."

"I'm glad you think so. Come on, let's go back upstairs. Maybe Bill finally decided to shut up."

Mabel nodded and swallowed the food in her mouth as she and her twin got up and headed out the kitchen. As much as she knew Dipper was right, there was something in the back of her mind that told her that she should trust her feelings. But how could she be certain?

They could still hear Bill talking to himself as they walked up the stairs. Dipper rolled his eyes as he turned the doorknob and opened the door, the demon now lying upside down on his bed as he continued his soliloquy.

"…and the whole building burnt down to the ground. And that brings us to the worst tragedy I ever caused!" he declared as he sat up and gave the twins wild grin. "I was the one who convinced George Lucas to make the prequels!"

"I knew that there had to be something evil driving him into that!" Dipper shouted angrily at the demon. "You're a monster!"

"Thanks you. I know!" Bill cackled manically.

The twins sighed. It was going to be a long night.


	5. Splish-Splashing Around (Day 4)

"Bill? Bill, wake up."

Mabel poked the demon's cheek, getting absolutely no response from him. He was just lying motionless on the floor. They didn't even know if he was breathing or not.

The twins weren't sure when Bill had stop rambling about the tragedies he had caused throughout history, but at some point the coffee in his system had stopped working and he must've collapsed unconscious on the floor. His face was turned to the wooden floorboards and his limbs were bent like he had fainted while he was walking around.

"Is he dead?" Mabel asked her brother, who was kneeling down in front of the demon.

"He's immortal, remember?" Dipper reminded her as he lifted Bill's head. "All that coffee he drank must've worn off."

"How do we wake him up, then?"

Dipper pushed himself up and grabbed a bottle of water from the table, sitting back down in front of Bill and pouring some the water on his head.

"GRAAAAAAAHHHH!" Bill shrieked as he quickly sat up and shot a blue flame at Dipper, which burned off his pajamas and left him wearing nothing but his BABBA boxers.

"Bill, what the heck?!" the brunet complained, opening a drawer and pulling out some clothes.

The demon groaned and flopped back down on his back.

"Ohhh, my heeaaaad…" he moaned, grasping his forehead. "What is this?"

"That's what happens when you crash after drinking ridiculous amounts of coffee." Dipper explained as he pulled on a pair of jeans.

"Is this what dying feels like?" the blond whined. "I don't like it."

"You're not gonna die." Said Mabel, digging into her purse and pulling out a box of pills. "You just need to take one of these."

"What're those?"

"Painkillers. Believe me, you'll feel better in no time."

She poured a pill into her palm and handed to Bill along with the water bottle they had used to wake him up. The demon gave the pill a questionable look before inserting it into his mouth, taking a swig of water to wash it down.

"How long until it kicks in?" Bill inquired as he handed Mabel the bottle.

"Not too long. In the meantime, I'll go get some ice for your head."

The brunette rose up and walked out of the room to get some ice from the kitchen. Bill closed his eyes and patted his cheeks, wondering why his face felt numb.

"I know what you've been doing."

Bill opened his eyes and saw Dipper was standing over him, giving him a menacing glare.

"Whatever do you mean?" he tried to act innocent, unable to keep a small smile from creeping through his lips as he sat up.

"Don't play dumb with me. Mabel told me you've been trying to put the moves on her." The boy knelt down and poked the demon's chest. "I don't know what your plan is, but you better back off."

"Tsk tsk, Pine Tree." The demon slowly shook his head, his smile remaining. "I thought you of all people would understand this. You know perfectly well what it's like to have your heart set on someone."

"Do you seriously expect me to believe that you have a crush on my sister?"

"Hey, this human body came with human emotions." He gestured all over his body. "And I can't help it if your sister is attractive."

"Listen, you overgrown Dorito!" Dipper grabbed the demon by his shirt collar and pulled him closer, his face radiating pure anger. "I'm only going to tell you this once: if you do anything, and I mean _anything_, to hurt her, I will end you!"

"What's going on?"

They both turned their heads to the door, where Mabel had just entered the room with an icepack in her hands and was staring perplexedly at the two men.

"Nothing. Just guy stuff." Dipper replied as he let go of Bill and stood back, pointing at his eyes and then at the demon to signal that he was watching him before sitting down on his bed.

Mabel knelt down behind Bill and gently placed the icepack on his forehead. The demon hissed when he felt the gelid object come in contact with his skin, but quickly got used to it.

"That feels… nice." He admitted, sounding rather impressed. "Thanks."

"You're welcome." Mabel smiled down at him.

Dipper narrowed his eyes; he could see right through Bill's act. If he thought for a second that he could fool him into thinking his feelings towards Mabel were genuine, he had another thing coming.

Bill's headache subsided about an hour later and he went back to being his insane self again. It was around that time that he realized how hot it was that day. Suddenly his clothes were starting to feel like the most uncomfortable thing on the planet. Even his sweat seemed to be evaporating right off of his forehead.

Good golly gosh, it was HOT!

"My clothes are glued to my skin!" Bill protested as he tugged on his shirt collar. "This is the worst feeling ever!"

"The online forecast says that this'll be one of the hottest days in the history of Gravity Falls." Dipper declared as he read the info on his laptop and wiped his forehead. "It sure feels like it to me."

"Is this supposed to be normal?" Bill asked, sprawled over the floor as he fanned himself with his hand.

"Not usually."

"It feels like the sun is farting on us." Mabel commented, pouring the rest of the water in her bottle over her face. "Make it stop!"

"How can you humans stand this?" Bill whined. "Or better yet, how do stop it?"

"We can't stop it, but there are ways to make it more bearable." Dipper replied as he closed his laptop.

"Like what?"

"Well, we can use air conditioners, fans, or ultimately – "

"The pool!" Mabel suddenly squealed and jumped off of her bed. "Let's go to the pool!"

"You mean that rectangular hole full of water and sweaty people?" Bill grimaced, crossing his arms in refusal. "No, thank you."

"You'd rather stay here boiling?"

Bill scowled; he really didn't want to be surrounded by dripping hot strangers, but the heat was really annoying him to no end. He didn't think he could stand much more of it.

"Fine…" the demon sighed in defeat and rolled his eye.

"Yay!" Mabel clapped her hands excitedly and ran to her drawer. "I'll get my swimwear!"

"Mabel, a word?" Dipper said as he pulled his sister aside. "I don't think taking Bill to a public pool is such a good idea."

"Why not?"

"Think about it. An unstable dream demon in the middle of all those people? There's no telling what he could do."

"I heard that!" Bill stated from where he was. "And for the record, I'm not unstable. I'm just quirky."

"I know Bill can be a bit 'extreme' sometimes…" Mabel said, making air quotes as she said the word 'extreme'. "…but even you have to agree that we can't leave him here under this heat. I mean, look at him."

Mabel gestured towards Bill, who had clouds of smoke coming off of him as his body made a sizzling sound. Dipper knew he was probably doing that himself, but as much as he hated to admit it, Mabel had a point.

"Fine, we'll take him." Dipper gave in, shooting Bill a defiant glare. "But you have to promise to be on your best behavior."

"No need to worry about me, Pine Tree." The demon floated over to the brunet and playfully tousled his hair. "I promise I won't do a single bad thing."

"I'll hold you to that promise." Dipper muttered as he tried to fix his hair.

* * *

They waited until after they had lunch to sneak Bill out and take off to the Gravity Falls Pool in Stan's car. They were lucky that both the Grunkles were too busy to go with them. Stan had a tour group to guide in the afternoon and Ford was studying some anomaly he had discovered on the eastern side of the forest. Dipper wanted to stay behind and help him, but he had to keep an eye on Bill. Now that he knew the demon was moving in on his sister, he needed to watch him even closer.

The pool was surprisingly empty for such a hot and sunny midsummer afternoon. Besides them there were a group of pre-teens, a sleeping elderly couple under two parasols and the lifeguard, who was boy around the twins' age that they'd never seen before. Dipper was glad Mr. Poolcheck wasn't there anymore. That guy was a living nightmare.

"Those chairs are free!" Mabel exclaimed, running towards the lounge chairs by the bathrooms.

"Mabel, almost all of the chairs are free." Dipper pointed out. "Slow down!"

After laying their towels on the chairs, Mabel went to the bathroom to change into her swimwear, whilst Dipper only pulled off his t-shirt, having put on his red swim trunks before leaving the Shack. Bill simply snapped his fingers and his clothes disappeared, being replaced by a pair of yellow and black boardshorts.

"Careful, Bill. You don't want anyone to see you using your powers, do you?" Dipper advised him as he squirted some sunscreen onto his hand.

"Psh! Lighten up, Mr. Paranoid. Nobody's looking at us. And quite frankly, it doesn't look like anybody cares." Bill explained as he looked around. "Those kids are too busy trying to drown each other, the lifeguard is so bored that he looks like he's almost in a coma, and those old geezers over there are probably passed out from the heat. I'd be surprised if they're still alive."

"Well anyway, you should still be careful. Here." The brunet tossed him the bottle of sunscreen, which Bill just stared at.

"What do I need this for?"

"To protect your skin from the sun. Trust me, you'll need it."

"Umm, no." Bill threw the bottle behind his back disinterestedly. "I'm a demon. A supernatural being of pure energy. I don't need to fear the sun, because it won't affect me. Plus, that looks disgusting."

"Have it your way." Dipper shrugged and lied back on his chair. "Just don't come crying when you catch a nasty sunburn."

"A sunburn, sure." He laughed sarcastically. "I've seen humans with sunburns, and they look hilaaaaaaaaaaa…"

Dipper cocked a brow at the demon when he suddenly trailed off, his jaw dropping and his eye widening almost to the size of a dinner plate as he stared at something behind the brunet. Turning around, Dipper saw the cause of the blond's reaction: Mabel had just walked out of the bathroom, now dressed in a rainbow-patterned bikini that seemed to fit her just perfectly.

Bill couldn't believe his eye. He had been completely wrong about how that bikini would look on her. It didn't look too revealing at all, it complemented her in every way. It hugged her slim body just right, showing every curve she had to offer. He didn't know what to say, so he just did the next best thing he could think of: he conjured a glass of water, drank it and instantly spat it out in shock.

"Sweet golden delight!" he exclaimed without taking his eye off of the brunette as she approached the two males. "Holy holograms!"

"What's wrong with Bill?" Mabel asked her brother, a bit weirded out by the demon's exclamations. "Why does he sound like sixties' Robin?"

"I think you broke him." Dipper replied with a chuckle.

Bill felt something strange happening to him. His new heart was beating so fast it was almost painful, his face fell warm, his legs were shaking, his palms were sweaty and for some reason everything around Mabel seemed to shimmer and glow. He was either having a psychotic episode or…

Oh no.

"Bill? Are you in there?" Mabel waved a hand in front of the demon's face.

"What, uh?" Bill babbled when he finally snapped out of it. "What happened?"

"I think you blacked out for a second." Mabel giggled. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Yeah, fine!" he quickly answered. "Just fine."

"Then what're waiting for?" she grabbed his arm and dragged him towards the pool. "Let's go swimming!"

They played in the water and splashed each other with glee as Dipper kept a close eye on them, trying to tan his extremely pale skin. They quickly figured out that Bill couldn't swim after he cannonballed into the deep end and sunk like a rock, so they decided to stay in the shallow end. Mabel tried to teach him the basics, but it seemed like, just as what happened with teaching him how to ride a bike the previous day, he simply couldn't learn, so she swam around a bit to show the demon how it was done. He agreed she was very good at it, and it was very enjoyable to watch her.

Apparently Bill wasn't the only one who thought so. At some point, he didn't really know when, the lifeguard had recovered from his boredom and was intently watching the brunette as she did backstrokes along the water. Bill didn't like the way he was looking at her. He wanted to ignore it but he just couldn't. He was imagining all the bad things he could do to torture the guy if he were to even speak to her.

He was so distracted with the other male's staring that he didn't notice that Mabel was rapidly swimming towards the edge of the pool. The brunette hit her head on the tile wall with great force and let out a loud yelp, which immediately pulled Bill back into reality.

"Ow…" she whined as she rubbed the back of her head.

"Are you OK?" he quickly moved towards her to help, for the first time in his life feeling genuinely concerned about someone else. "Did you hurt yourself?"

"I don't think so. I just hit my head really hard."

"Is everything alright?"

They both looked up and saw the lifeguard kneeling down next to them, flashing them a bright smile. He was wearing a red speedo and had shoulder-length black hair that seemed to be blowing in the wind.

Bill gave him an angry glare. How the heck did he get there so fast?

"I saw you hit your head." He said, placing a hand Mabel's sore spot. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Mabel winced under the lifeguard's touch. "It just hurts a lot."

"Well, you should be more careful." He spoke softly as he ran his fingers through her hair. "It would be a shame for such a pretty little head to be injured."

"Hohoh, you." Mabel chuckled, her cheeks turning pink as she scratched her arm embarrassedly.

Bill felt his blood boil and clenched his fists to keep himself from launching himself at the guy right there.

"Would you like me to go get you some ice from the concession stand?" he offered as he helped her stand up.

"Oh no, you don't have to do that… uh…"

"Kurt. My name is Kurt. And not to worry, I'm supposed to be running the stand anyway. It would be my pleasure, Miss…"

"Mabel." She replied in a happy exhale.

"Alright-y, then. I'll be right back with some ice for your sore head, Mabel."

He walked away towards the concession stand, Mabel's gaze fixed on him. Bill's eye twitched and he released a low growl that he was glad Mabel didn't hear. He had to do something about that pesky lifeguard.

"I'll be right back." He declared as he climbed out of the pool. "I'm… going to the bathroom."

"Since when do you go to the bathroom?" Mabel inquired.

"Since right now." He replied angrily.

Meanwhile at the concession stand, Kurt whistled happily as he opened the cooler and pulled out a bag of ice. He closed the cooler and turned around, jumping back when he saw a blond guy with an eye patch mere inches away from him, a look of pure rage on his face.

"Whoa, how did you get in here?" Kurt asked in his surprised state, only to have the blond push him against the wall by his shoulders. "Dude, what the heck?"

"Listen, Hot Stuff..." Bill growled, his hot breath blowing on the other man's face. "You better stay away from that girl, or else!"

"Why? Are you her boyfriend?"

"Well, no… but still!" he leaned closer, his glare more menacing by the second. "Back… off!"

"Sorry dude, but no can do." The lifeguard smirked and pushed the blond away. "That girl's the hottest babe I've seen come here since I started lifeguarding this summer. If you're not moving in, then I am. And there's nothing you can do about it."

"We'll just see about that." Bill grinned evilly, a blue flame appearing on his hand.

Mabel sat on the edge of the pool, splashing her feet in the water and looking around as she waited for Kurt to return with the ice for her head. It didn't hurt anymore, but if a cute lifeguard was going out of his way to tend to her injury, who was she to say no?

She glanced at the concession stand, hoping to see him coming out, when she was hit by a splash of water. Turning to her right, she saw Bill was back in the pool.

"I'm back!" he sang, moving to lean against the edge. "Missed me?"

"Not really." She giggled, gazing back at the stand across the pool. "Kurt sure is taking a while."

"Oh, he's just probably really busy right now." Bill snickered under his breath. He had to make sure she never found out he had turned the lifeguard into a llama and teleported him to the darkest and most dangerous forest in Peru, where he would certainly be devoured by jaguars.

"I guess…" she sighed, a bit disappointed and looked down at her demon friend, her eyes widening when she saw his skin was turning a light shade of pink. "Bill?"

"Yeeeeeesss?" he flashed her a grin.

"Did you put on sunscreen?"

"No, why?"

* * *

"MrrrrmrmmyyyyYAAAAAAAAHAAAAaaaaaaaahhh…"

Bill whined loudly as he lied on Mabel's bed, his skin bright red and stinging with every little move he made. A tear threatened to drop from his eye when he realized it even hurt to breathe. The pain was truly unbearable.

"We warned you. You can't be exposed to the sun without sunscreen." Mabel told him as she rummaged through her toiletry bag.

"Spare me the 'I told you so' speech." Bill whimpered, trying his best not to move. "I feel bad enough already."

"Luckily for you, I have just the thing for sunburns." She declared and pulled out a pale-green bottle.

"What's that?" Bill asked, wincing as he turned his head.

"Aloe vera. It heals sunburnt skin. I always bring it with me because of Dipper. No matter how much sunscreen he applies, he always gets a little burned." Mabel giggled to herself as she walked up to her bed and handed Bill the bottle. "Just pour some on yourself and rub it around. You'll feel better in no time."

"Yeah… I don't think I can move. Think you can maybe do it yourself?"

"Oh!" Mabel gripped the bottle tightly, her cheeks turning pink. "S-sure, I guess."

She slowly and nervously climbed onto her bed and knelt down between Bill's legs, careful not to touch any of the demon's burnt skin. She found herself staring at Bill's form, noticing all the little details about his body. He was lanky, but had a tiny bit of muscle on his arms and his chest. He had no chest hair, which made her wonder why he had chosen to leave that out when he turned himself human.

She shook her head when she remembered the task at hand and took the top off of the aloe vera bottle. She poured some of the substance onto Bill's chest, which made the demon flinch.

"Criminy, that's cold!" Bill hissed through his clenched teeth.

"Don't worry, it'll feel better soon." She assured him, involuntarily avoiding eye contact with him.

She hesitated a bit, wondering if she should really rub Bill's abdomen, but pushed that thought aside when she remembered that he was in pain. Her hands trembled as she lowered them onto the demon's chest and slowly rubbed the green liquid around, the blond releasing a throaty exhale when he felt his skin starting to cool down.

Mabel made sure she covered every inch of skin with the healing substance, but for some reason she would always unknowingly return to his pecs. Bill noticed this and couldn't help but smile.

"Enjoying yourself?" he asked, giving the brunette a devious grin when he saw her jump a bit in shock, ironically keeping her hands on his chest.

"D-don't be ridiculous!" she stammered, her cheeks reddening even more as she continued her ministrations to the demon's abdomen. "You know I'm only doing this because you ca– "

She suddenly lost her balance when her hands slipped from Bill's chest, causing her to fall forward right onto him. The demon cried out in pain before he noticed their noses were touching and their lips were just a couple of inches apart. Mabel's face was now beet-red and her eyes were as wide as saucers. Bill could feel his own face start to warm up.

"I-I'm… I'm sorry." She quickly pushed herself off of him and sat at the foot of her bed, looking down at her knees as she nervously wiped her hands on her shirt. "I-I slipped."

"Hey, no problem." He propped himself up on his elbows and scratched the back of his head, his skin feeling much better. "Accidents happen. I usually make them happen, but I assure you this wasn't the case."

She looked up at him and smiled softly, Bill doing the same thing. He never thought he would smile so honestly and willingly, but there was something about Mabel and how adorable she looked that made him want to do it more often.

He immediately frowned when he realized what he was thinking. What was wrong with him? He was supposed to be making her fall for him, not the other way around! Why was this happening?

"I should go. I promised to help Grunkle Stan make dinner while Dipper and Ford are busy doing whatever their doing." She said as she hopped off of the bed and headed towards the door. "I hope you feel better."

"I do, but I better stay here just in case." He replied, slowly lowering himself back onto the comforter under him, a long sigh escaping his lips.

She suppressed a giggle and walked out of the room, softly closing the door behind her.

Bill glanced up at the door and gulped down the lump that was forming in his throat. He couldn't let his feelings get the best of him, or else he was done for. He had to stick to his original plan. He had already gained her trust, and he could tell she was starting to fall for his charms. He just had to seal the deal and make sure he didn't screw up. That wouldn't be too hard, right?

…Right?

* * *

_"_ _And the winner of this year's Nobel Peace Prize is… Mr. Dipper Pines, for discovering and permanently closing the gate to the underworld, thus ridding the Earth of all supernatural threats."_

_The crowd cheered as a very happy and snappily-dressed Dipper Pines made his way onto the stage and shook the hand of the Chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee before the elderly man handed him his award. Flashing the audience a grin, he positioned himself behind the podium and cleared his throat._

_"_ _Thank you all for granting me the honor of receiving this prestigious award." He said as he gestured towards the golden object in his hand. "I couldn't've done without the help of my great-uncle Ford, who introduced me to the world of mystery and supernatural occurrences, and helped me with some of my research. Also – "_

_"_ _WHOO-HOO! GO DIPPER! YOU'RE THE BEST, BRO-BRO!" Mabel shouted from a table in the middle of the room, causing everyone else to stare at her in shock._

_"_ _I say, who is that awfully boorish girl?" asked a fancy stuck-up old lady, her expression one of disgust as she watched Mabel continue to cheer her brother on through her opera glasses._

_"_ _I don't know, but she is ruining the ceremony." Replied the old gentleman next to her as he adjusted his monocle._

_All the members of high society started murmuring indignantly amongst themselves, saying things like 'how rude' and 'I'd never'. Mabel noticed how they were all giving her disapproving looks and stopped what she was doing, her smile turning into a frown and her cheeks bright red in embarrassment._

_"_ _I apologize for the extremely rude interruption, ladies and gentlemen." Dipper said disappointedly, putting special emphasis on the words 'extremely rude'. "That girl over there is my twin sister Mabel, who never made up her mind about what to major in, and so never went to College!"_

_The whole room gasped in unison, all of them staring at Mabel in utter disbelief. The brunette sank into her seat and tried to hide behind her table in shame, but to no avail._

_"_ _Oh my, how embarrassing!" declared another old lady before she started to laugh along with everyone else in the room._

_Mabel couldn't take it; their laughter echoing through her ears was the worst kind of torture imaginable. Even Dipper was laughing at her! Tears started to roll down her cheeks as she covered her head with her arms, trying to block out the sounds around her, but she could hear them just as well. She felt like it was hard to breathe, as if the humiliation alone was smothering her to death._

_She was a failure._

Mabel jumped on her bed, sitting up and realizing she had had the sheets over her head the whole time. She was drenched in sweat and her heart beat uncontrollably as she panted heavily, the nightmare she just had replaying itself in her head.

She knew exactly what that dream meant. Ever since they finished school and she found out that Dipper had received a scholarship to West Coast Tech, she had begun to doubt herself. She had no idea what she wanted to study, and only enrolled in Piedmont Community College to make her parents happy and keep them off her back. She was afraid, both for herself and her future.

She flopped down on her bed with a sigh. The room was unbearably quiet; even Bill's snoring couldn't be heard. He must've done something about that. She would never go back to sleep now. There was only one thing she could do, the one thing she always did when she had a bad dream and needed help falling asleep again.

"Meow…" she started halfheartedly, feeling her stomach turning with anxiety. "Meow meow… Meow meow meow…"

"What're you doing?"

She rolled over to her side and glanced down, noticing Bill's head peeking from under the bed and looking up at her with a ticked-off sleepy expression.

"Sorry, I had a bad dream." She whispered. "This is what I do when I have bad dreams."

"You meow yourself to sleep?" he yawned as he rubbed his eye.

"I've been doing it since I was little. It never fails."

"Fine, then." He slipped back underneath the bed. "Carry on."

"Wait!"

"What?" he groaned, his head reappearing.

"I know this is gonna sound weird, but…" she gripped her sheets, feeling her cheeks warming up. "…could you maybe… stay up here with me, tonight?"

"Are you serious?" he raised a brow at her.

"Normally I would ask Dipper, but he seems to be sound asleep and I wouldn't want to wake him. Please?"

"Sure, whatever." Bill snapped his fingers and appeared on Mabel's right side. "So what was your dream about?"

"The future." She replied as she snuggled underneath the covers.

"Oh, I don't blame you. I've seen the future, and it sure isn't pretty."

"Not like that, _my_ future."

"What about it?"

"I'm really scared. Dipper's got it all figured out, and I have no idea what I want to do. I don't even know what I want to study in College." She sighed and covered her head with her blanket. "I'm only seventeen and I've already failed at life."

"That's it?" Bill scoffed. "That's nothing! The fact that you don't know what to do from now on doesn't automatically make you failure."

"You really think so?"

"Kid, I've seen some major failures in my time here. Usually they're my fault, but in some cases they managed to screw up themselves." He gave her a friendly pat on the shoulder. "You're gonna be just fine. Trust me, I know."

"Wow… thanks, Bill." Mabel smiled widely at the demon. "I never thought I'd say this, but… you really helped me out right now."

"Don't mention it." he shrugged. "Seriously, don't mention it. I have a reputation to keep."

Mabel snorted and started giggling. She wasn't sure what was funnier: what Bill had said or the fact that he actually made her feel better about herself. It was really weird to think that Bill Cipher, _the_ Bill Cipher, had helped someone instead of causing trouble.

She felt her eyelids grow heavy and that it was getting harder and harder for her to stay awake. She gave the blond one last glance before she closed her eyes and released a long sigh before she dozed off.

Bill found himself observing the brunette as she slept, listening to her steady breathing and watching her chest raise with every breath she took. She looked so peaceful, so helpless… so beautiful.

He shook his head when he realized what he was thinking. He couldn't allow himself to think like that, it would ruin his plan! How could he be falling for her? It was absolutely ridiculous!

But why did it feel so right?

Bill bit his lip, trying to think about something else, but he couldn't stop staring at her. Then a thought dawned on him: why had he picked her in the first place? He could've just picked the first random girl he found on the street and made her fall in love with him. Why did he chose the one girl he had wronged and whom he had sworn revenge on? What had made him chose her out of all people? What was so special about her?

Oh no… it was her. She was special.

And he was done for.


	6. Rainy Day Trekkin' (Day 5)

Bill didn't sleep at all that night. His mind was overflowing with thoughts on why he was starting to feel differently about Mabel and how he could stop it. How did he allow himself to get caught up like that? Why was he suddenly feeling like she was the most wonderful creature on the planet? And most importantly… how could he go through with his plans now?

He pretended to be asleep when she woke up, so as to avoid the whole third degree. He couldn't let her find out about what was going on in his head. He needed to make sure nobody found, or else everything would go down the drain. He also needed to figure out his next move. With only three days left, he had to make each of them count. No more screw-ups.

He was glad Mabel got him out of there before Dipper woke up and found him on her bed, or else he would never hear the end of it. He didn't really want to get up; he felt completely worn out from being awake all night. He was just about to fall asleep when she jumped onto the bed and shook him until he reluctantly opened his eyes with the promise that she had a special day prepared for both of them. How she managed to have so much energy that early in the morning was beyond him…

When he finally managed to lift himself up from under the covers, Mabel was already dressed, packed and ready to go. She almost literally dragged him out of the room and sneaked him outside, which wasn't too hard considering all the other residents were still asleep. Apparently she had made herself breakfast and washed up without waking anyone and left a sticky note on Dipper's forehead saying they would be back later.

The demon was almost blinded by the bright sunlight when he stepped outside with the girl. He wondered what she was planned that was so special and that required her to be wearing mountain boots and carrying a backpack. He finally figured it out when she pulled him by the arm into the forest through a specific trail.

Hiking. They were going hiking.

"What a sorry excuse for an activity." Bill complained, floating behind Mabel as she skipped along. "Walking is so boring…"

"You just need to get used to it." Mabel stated. "It's all about enjoying the trip and the scenery."

"Then why is _it_ here?" Bill pointed down towards Mabel's feet, where Waddles was following her closely.

"Waddles wanted to tag along. Didn't you, sweetie?" she knelt down and rubbed her nose against Waddles' snout. "Who's mommy's little cutie pie? You are! Yes you are!"

"Alright already, that's enough!" he grumbled as he floated past her. "Let's just get this over with."

"Sure! Just one more thing, though." She lifted herself up and wiped the dirt from her knees. "On your feet."

"Excuse me?" he incredulously raised a brow at her.

"You heard me, on your feet. It's not a hiking trip if you're not actually hiking."

"I was never much of a fan of using my legs. Floating is so much easier."

"No, it's cheating." She gave him a stern look. "On… your… feet."

"Fine…" he sighed exasperatedly, lowering his feet onto the ground below him and standing up straight with his arms crossed and an annoyed expression on his face. "Happy, your highness?"

"Very." She smiled at him and turned back around towards the trail. "Let's continue."

They walked for what seemed like hours, especially for Bill, whose weak legs were gradually getting used to… well, being used. The trail ended at the bottom of a tall hill, which, much to the demon's chagrin, Mabel decided they should climb up. It wasn't very steep, so it wasn't too hard to climb. When they finally reached the top it was already lunchtime, so Mabel pulled out a picnic towel from her backpack and laid it on the grassy ground so they could have a picnic. Bill dropped down onto the towel while Mabel took out some sandwiches from her backpack and Waddles chewed one of the towel's edges.

"Do you want the tuna or the egg sandwich?" Mabel asked, waving the foil-covered sandwiches in each of her hands.

"Neither." Bill replied, lying back onto the towel and folding his hands behind his head. "I don't eat, remember?"

"I know. I still brought one for you in case you chanced your mind." She placed both the sandwiches down on the towel and took another one from her backpack, which she unwrapped and gave to Waddles. "Here you go, Waddles. I made you a cream corn sandwich with the crusts cut off."

The pig sniffed the sandwich and then yanked it out of Mabel's hand, rapidly chewing on it. Mabel giggled as she watched her pet eat the treat she made him, while Bill watched her in wonder. Why was she so attached to an omnivorous mammal that enjoyed rolling in its own filth? Waddles was so… ordinary. He guessed there were just some aspects of human behavior he would never fully grasp.

They spent the rest of the afternoon chatting happily. Bill regaled Mabel with some stories about what he had seen and done and where he had been throughout his lifetime. Mabel was surprised to know that the demon had been to so many different dimensions. She had no idea there were so many of them.

"So what kind of dimensions have you been to?" she inquired, sitting down with her legs crossed and Waddles on her lap, occasionally petting the pig. "Were they weird?"

"The weirdest." Bill confirmed, absentmindedly tossing bits of the sandwich he didn't eat onto the floor for the birds to feed on. "There's this one that I think is an alternate post-apocalyptic world where there's only one human left and he just runs around with a weird dog with stretchy powers, then there's the one where every kid has a fairy to help them along their childhood, and another one where I have no idea what was going on. Nothing made sense there and every living creature was a different thing. I saw a fish with legs there, once. It wore nothing but sneakers. Oh, and then there's that one dimension where everyone's a talking horse."

"Really?" Mabel gasped and leaned forward. "Are there unicorns there? And are they nicer than the ones we have here?"

"Yes and yes. Well, most of them, anyway. One of my best friends lives there. He's a weird mix of different animals that has most of my powers. He used to be evil, but now he's turned to the good side."

Mabel stared at him in awe when she felt a drop of water fall on her nose. She extended her hand with her palm turned upwards and her fears were confirmed: it was beginning to rain.

"Where did those clouds come from?" Mabel questioned rhetorically, instinctively covering her head with her arms.

"Are you kidding me? Yesterday was hot as all heck and now it's raining?!" Bill said in disbelief without making a single effort to protect himself from the rain. "Looks like Al Gore was right after all. Maybe I shouldn't've sabotaged the voting so he would lose."

"Looks like our hiking trip is ruined." Mabel pouted as the rain started to pour harder.

"Not necessarily." Bill snapped his fingers and an open umbrella appeared over Mabel's head, hovering over her so she wouldn't have to hold it. "There you go."

"Oh, thank you! But what about you?"

"Please. It's just a little water. What harm could it do?"

* * *

Mabel opened the door to the attic and helped Bill in. The demon shivered as he hugged himself, his teeth chattering and his clothes and hair completely soaked from the rain. He was so wet and cold he could barely move without assistance.

"Somehow I knew this would happen." Mabel sighed and handed Bill her beach towel. "You better get out of those clothes and dry yourself off before you catch a cold."

"Th-th-th-tha-thank y-you." Bill shuddered as he grabbed the towel and began to unbutton his tailcoat.

Mabel caught herself observing the blond as he slowly and difficultly removed his clothes, her cheeks flushing brightly as she wondered why he wouldn't make his clothes disappear and be done with it. She figured the rain and the cold had rendered him too weak to use his powers.

He was halfway through unbuttoning his white shirt when she realized what she was doing and quickly turned herself around. Bill mustn't've noticed that she was looking at him, or else he would've made some witty remark about it without even thinking twice.

"You got any extra clothes I could borrow?" Bill asked as he wrapped Mabel's towel around himself, now wearing nothing but his underwear. "I would conjure some up myself, but I still feel too weak."

"S-sure!" she stuttered as she opened up a drawer and rummaged through it, making sure not to face the demon so he couldn't see how flustered she was. "I'm sure Dipper has something around here that he doesn't use… Ah, here we go!" She pulled out a teal sweater with the words 'world's best bro' sewn on in loopy cursive. "I made him this for his sixteenth birthday but he rarely wears it. Go figure."

She tossed the demon the sweater and he caught it with his right hand, his left one holding the towel around him. He examined the sweater thoroughly, taking in all the details. The fabric was of great quality and the stitching looked like the work of a professional. He was fascinated about how well-made it was.

"You actually made this?" he inquired as he looked up at her with a surprised expression.

"Yup." She replied happily as she searched the drawer for some pants Dipper didn't wear.

"I'm impressed. This is topnotch work!"

"Oh, you're just saying that." She responded, pulling out a pair of old washed-out jeans.

"Kid, I have the power to conjure every type of garment known to man, and I honestly think I couldn't make anything that looks as good as this." He held the sweater in front of himself to see how good it would look on him. "You've got some serious talent. You could actually make a living out of this."

Mabel dropped the jeans and let out one of the loudest gasps Bill had ever heard. Her jaw fell and she felt everything suddenly become clear in her mind.

"Oh my gosh, that's it!" she took her hands to her cheeks, her smile slowly returning. "I can't believe I didn't remember this sooner! How could I have been so stupid?"

"Am I missing something?" Bill asked, feeling a little lost in the conversation.

"Fashion! That's my future! It's all so clear now!" she walked around the room excitedly. "I'm so good at making clothes and being creative! I can't believe I ever doubted myself! Oh, Bill!" she suddenly turned around and gave the demon a tight hug, which caused him to drop the sweater and the towel around him to fall to the ground. "Thank you! Thank you so much!"

"You're… welcome?" said Bill, caught a bit by surprise.

Mabel suddenly opened her eyes when she realized she was hugging the almost naked demon and resting her head on his chest. She looked up at him, her cheeks bright red, and saw that he looked just as shocked as her. They ended up getting lost in each other's eyes, or in Mabel's case, _eye_. Bill couldn't stop looking into Mabel's big and bright chocolate-brown eyes, and Mabel was fascinated by Bill's large black slit-like pupil. She almost wanted to yank his eyepatch away and see if his other eye was actually there or not.

When she finally released the demon, he released a breath he didn't realize he was holding in.

"Sorry about that. I guess I got a little too excited…" she giggled nervously and picked the jeans back up, handing them to the blond. "Here, get dressed. I gotta go tell Dipper about this!"

As she ran out of the room and headed down to the basement to tell her brother about her epiphany, Bill just stood in the middle of the room staring at the door. The hug had shocked him, but it had also felt really good to be held close by the brunette. His heart skipped a beat and he smiled to himself when he recalled the feeling of her arms around him.

He sighed and decided to stop fighting his feelings towards the girl. As much as he tried he couldn't keep them at bay, so what was the point? Now that he thought about it, what was the harm if he got her to love him and he reciprocated her feelings? As long as she never found out about his deal with Time Baby, he could still go forward with his plans. Besides, he never thought liking someone would feel so nice.

He looked down at the sweater she had given him and picked it back up, bringing it up to his face and inhaling the pleasant smell that emanated from it. Even if she had made that particular piece of clothing for her brother, it still bared her sweet scent. Dipper must've not worn it very much. He was glad.

He put on the sweater and hugged it around him, feeling like she had her arms around him again. He would never admit to doing that to another living being, and if anyone else saw him he would certainly pulverize them without even thinking twice.

For the first time in his long life, Bill Cipher felt genuinely happy.


	7. From Villain to Hero (Day 6)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: blood

Mabel was so excited she could barely keep herself still. She kept bouncing around the house and talking about her new plans to anyone that could hear her. She was so hyped about what she was going to do that she didn't even sleep that night. Bill understood why the twins had felt so annoyed when he had had that caffeine rush a few days ago. It was really infuriating.

She went online and searched for universities where she could study fashion and/or design, and after some extensive research through the webpages of some of the best schools in the country, she found one that fulfilled all of her personal requirements. They were still accepting applications until the end of summer and all she had to do was create some outfits and present them to the Admissions Committee. She dedicated the entire morning to designing a wide variety of clothes, making sure they were perfect enough for the Admissions Committee. When she finally decided she was happy with her work, it was time to start bringing her designs to life.

"You really think they're good enough?" Mabel asked her brother expectantly as he leafed through the drawings on her aptly-named 'Fashion Portfolio'. "I really want to impress the judges."

"Mabel, these are perfect." Dipper assured her for the umpteenth time. "Trust me, they'd be crazy not to accept you."

"I really hope they do. That school sounds really good and they have an awesome fashion program." She said as she walked around the room, nervously tugging at her hair. "I soooo want in!"

"If it's really that good, they might be very strict about who they accept." Dipper commented as he closed the portfolio. "These look great, but if you really want to get in, you might have to bring your A-game."

"My A-game, heh?" Mabel pondered, rubbing her chin and gazing into the distance. "I need something different. Something so amazing that will blow the judges away! But what?"

"I might have a suggestion for that." Dipper retrieved one of the journals from under his bed and flipped through it, stopping when he found what he wanted. "Here we go, magic yarn!"

"Magic yarn?" Mabel inquired as she peeked over her brother's shoulder.

"Says here that if you make anything out of it, it will magically adapt itself to the wearer's body and change its color according to their mood. If you use that, you'll definitely be a shoo-in."

"I love it! But isn't that technically cheating?"

"Is there anything in the rules that says you can't use magic?"

"No."

"Then there you go." He turned the page. "The journal says you can find the magic yarn near the gnomes' territory, over at the northeastern side of the forest."

"I'm already there!" she declared as she swiftly pulled on her sneakers.

"Just be careful, OK?" Dipper advised as he closed the journal. "Ford and I have been monitoring the eastern side, and there's something really weird going on over – "

When he looked up she was already gone, so he released an exasperated sigh as he pulled his laptop onto his lap and switched it on, reaching for his headphones as he waited for the device to come to life.

* * *

Mabel skipped through the dense woods as she looked around, occasionally glancing down at the smartphone in her hands, the compass app she had installed guiding her through every turn. She followed the compass's needle where it pointed towards the northeast, hoping to find the place where the magic yarn was.

Her attention was deviated when she saw a deep and dark cave that she didn't recall ever seeing before. She walked towards it for closer inspection, when she noticed there seemed to be some words scratched onto the outside wall. She traced her index finger through them as she read what was written aloud.

"'Beware the Black Beast of Aaaaarrrrrrggghhh.'" she declaimed, bursting into laughter when she finished. "That's a funny name."

Her giggles were interrupted when she heard loud growling coming from inside the cave. Mabel's smile fell and her eyes widened as she took a few steps back. Whatever was in there growled again, this time even louder. She gasped when the creature finally appeared, relief instantly washing over her.

It was just a white rabbit.

"Aw, what a cute little bunny!" she cooed as she knelt down in front of the small animal. "What were you doing in that cave? You better head home, I think there's a monster in there."

Mabel moved her hand towards the rabbit to pat it on the head when it suddenly tried to bite her. She quickly pulled back her hand and stared at the rabbit in shock, the small animal showing off its pointy teeth as it snarled at the brunette. Mabel was horrified to see that its teeth had red stains on them, as if it had been recently feasting on some innocent woodland creature.

"N-nice bunny…" Mabel stuttered as she slowly pushed herself up and stepped back, her hands raised in front of her in a defensive way. "You wouldn't hurt me, right?"

The rabbit kept snarling as it launched itself at her. Mabel was able to dodge it by just a few inches and ran off in the opposite direction, not even bothering to check if it was chasing her. The rabbit watched her run off and then hopped back into the cave.

Mabel kept running, not wanting to risk becoming the meal of a carnivorous rabbit. Panting heavily, she looked back to see if it had come after her. She found she wasn't being chased, but then she felt herself lose her footing and rolled down a steep cliff. The fall wasn't too big, so she landed on the dirt ground without taking much damage.

She lifted herself up with a groan, dusting herself off as best as she could. She had a few scrapes along her arms and legs, but nothing too serious.

"Aw, geez…" she complained, trying to make out her surroundings. "Where am I?"

She had never been to that part of the woods before. It seemed darker than the rest of it and the air felt heavy for some reason. Most of the trees were either dead or broken and there was absolutely no grass on the ground, just soil. She decided it would be best to keep going, so she followed the only visible path through the trees.

If only she had noticed that her phone had fallen from her pocket and she had left without it.

If only she had seen that the compass was now pointing East.

She pushed away some low branches that stood in her way as she kept walking, hoping to find a way out soon. She had the weirdest feeling that she was being followed, and the sound of the wind blowing through the trees didn't help. Her eyes darted everywhere, expecting to see someone or some_thing_ watching her. At one point she could've sworn she had heard something run past her from behind, but she figured it was just her imagination.

She froze when she heard what sounded like snarling around her. Had the rabbit followed her all the way there? No, it couldn't have! Turning around and looking down, she confirmed that the rabbit was nowhere in sight. But if it wasn't the rabbit, then what was making that sound?

She turned back towards the path to keep walking, when something jumped in front of her. Even if it seemed vaguely human-like, it was absolutely hideous. Its skin was taut against its body, it exhibited spinal disfiguration, giving it a hunchback-like appearance, it had razor-sharp teeth, limbs which looked longer than usual and no hair.

It stood on all fours and released a high-pitched shriek before launching at Mabel, who only had time to scream before starting to run for her life.

* * *

"'Dear Shooting Star'… No, too formal… 'Hey, Shooting Star! How's it going?'… Too casual… 'Yo, Double S, what up?'… Urgh, that's even worse!"

Bill crushed another piece of paper in anger and tossed it behind his back next to the other crumpled paper balls. He had isolated himself in the roof and was trying to write a heartfelt letter to Mabel in hopes that that would make her finally fall for him, but after being up there all day and writing about thirty failed attempts, he was starting to think he wasn't that good at creative writing.

Taking a deep breath to calm himself, he conjured another piece of paper with a pen hovering over it, ready to start writing as soon as he thought of something good enough. He had just gotten an idea about what to write when he got a weird feeling in his gut, one that he didn't like. He quickly conjured the gold-framed mirror he had used when he arrived and zoomed in on a particular part of the globe.

What he saw confirmed his suspicions and made his heart sink.

"Oh no."

* * *

Mabel felt herself gradually run out breath as she kept running through the forest as fast as she could. She could still hear the creature chasing after her, its heavy breathing and low growls sending shivers down her spine. Turning her head around, she saw the creature was leaping from tree to tree to try and catch up to her quicker. This made her panic even more. If that thing was able to jump that well, how long would be it until it pounced on her?

Suddenly she realized she couldn't hear it anymore; all she heard was the sound of her feet hitting the ground. She looked back and saw the creature had disappeared without a trace. She kept looking around as she slowed down, inspecting every inch around as she slowly walked backwards.

After seeing that the thing was clearly nowhere in sight, Mabel released one of the deepest sighs of her life, holding her chest to try and calm her rapidly beating heart. She turned back around to keep moving, when she saw the last thing she wanted to see right then: the creature was now right in front of her, hanging upside down from a tree.

They both shrieked at the same time and the thing took a swing at her, its sharp claws slicing her right side and sending her rolling across the path. Her back hit the edge of the cliff where she had fallen from earlier and she released a groan as she held onto her side. She pushed herself up with great difficulty and gasped when she looked down at herself: she was bleeding abundantly, the red substance rapidly soaking her now torn yellow smiley face t-shirt. The creature slowly approached her on all fours, snarling menacingly before launching itself right at her. Mabel shut her eyes tightly, waiting for the impact…

Only it never came. Instead she heard a whack and what sounded like someone falling flat on the ground.

She quickly opened her eyes and saw what had happened: Bill was standing in front of her, holding his cane over his head with both hands. She also saw the creature was lying on the ground a few feet away, visibly stunned. Clearly Bill had smacked it on the head before it could land on her.

"Back off, you freak!" Bill threatened, his cane disappearing and being replaced with a blue flame on each of his hands. "Don't think I won't hurt you!"

The creature released another shriek before pouncing towards Bill. The blond launched the flames in his hands and they engulfed the thing completely. It ran around screeching for a while before it dashed in the opposite direction.

Bill panted heavily as he watched the creature run away, making sure it didn't come back. Mabel didn't remember seeing the demon that angry since they foiled his plans to destroy Grunkle Stan's memory. It was scary to see him this upset.

"Good riddance." He muttered before kneeling down beside Mabel, his angry expression replaced with a worried one. "Are you OK?"

"Yeah…" she replied as she tried to lift herself up. "I – "

A sharp pain ran through her side and she fell back down onto the floor with the loss of her strength. Bill gasped and rolled her over, his eye widening when he saw the five deep gashes on her body.

"What did that thing do to you?!" he exclaimed as he started to panic.

She felt herself start lose consciousness. The last thing she saw before her eyelids fell shut was Bill picking her up and starting to run out of the forest with her in his arms.

* * *

"OK, I got the key to the prison, now I just have to make sure the Grunt doesn't find me." Dipper declared as he hurriedly clicked on the WASD keys of his laptop's keyboard.

"PINE TREEEEEEEEEEE!"

He nearly fell off his bed when Bill kicked the door open and ran in with a bleeding passed-out Mabel in his arms.

"What happened?!" Dipper exclaimed, pushing his laptop off of him and pulling off his headphones as he quickly leaped from his bed. "What did you do?!"

"It wasn't me!" he replied, panting heavily with a look of pure fear on his face. "She was attacked by a Wendigo!"

"A Wendigo?!" Dipper picked up the journal he had used earlier and rapidly flipped through it. "Are you sure?"

"I know what a Wendigo looks like." Bill declared as he carefully laid Mabel on her bed. "I've encountered them before. They're just as vicious as I remember."

"That must be what's been roaming around the eastern side of the forest. I warned her not to go there."

"A little late for that now, don't you think?" Bill snapped, almost growling at the brunet.

"Here we go, Wendigos." He said when he found the page about the creature in question. "Doesn't say anything about a person who's attacked by them transforming into one of them, so she's safe."

"Safe?! She's bleeding to death!" Bill shouted. "We need to get her to the hospital!"

"She'll never make it in time, she's lost too much blood!" Dipper retorted as he checked his sister's pulse. "She's getting weaker."

"Then get Sixer! He's got to know how to fix this!"

"He's not here. He went grocery shopping with Stan to make sure he doesn't bring back nothing but junk food." He checked the journal again. "There's got to be something here that can help her!"

"There is. Stand back." Bill pushed Dipper away and leaned over the passed out brunette.

"What're you doing?"

"You're gonna have to trust me on this."

Dipper was reluctant to trust Bill, especially about such a delicate matter as his sister's life, but there was nothing he could do. She was bleeding at an alarming rate and if her injuries weren't mended quickly she could die. He sighed and nodded, allowing the demon to proceed.

Bill took a deep breath as he removed his gloves and pulled Mabel's t-shirt to expose her wounds, hoping Time Baby hadn't taken away the power he needed to use to help her. He gently placed both his hands over Mabel's injuries and closed his eye, focusing all of his energy on that one spot, which soon started to glow a bright shade of blue. Bill gritted his teeth and started to sweat as the gashes on Mabel's side gradually started to disappear.

Dipper was amazed about the demon's healing ability. He had no idea he possessed such power, and wondered if had ever used it before on another living being. His astonishment increased when he saw that, as the injuries were disappearing from his sister's body, they were appearing on Bill's, fresh blood quickly staining through the demon's tailcoat as he grunted in pain.

As the last of Mabel's wounds faded away, Bill collapsed on the floor in exhaustion. He had lost all the color on his face and was having trouble breathing, his coat almost completely soaked in blood.

"Are you OK?" Dipper asked as he worriedly looked over at the demon.

"I'll… I'll be fine." He said between breaths, his eye slowly opening.

Mabel suddenly shot up, taking deep breaths with a look of horror on her face.

"What… what happened?" she inquired frantically as she looked around confusedly.

"Mabel, you're OK!" Dipper exclaimed as he hugged his sister. "I was so worried!"

"Dipper, what's going on?" she looked down as she noticed Bill lying down on the floor. "And what's wrong with Bill?"

"You're not gonna believe this." Dipper released her and sat on her bed. "You were attacked in the forest and Bill saved you! He brought you here and transferred your injuries onto himself!"

"He… did?"

She looked down at herself and saw her t-shirt was torn and stained with blood, yet she didn't have as much as a scar. She ran a hand through her smooth skin as the memory of that afternoon's events started to come back to her.

"I remember now!" she gasped. "I was attacked by this really ugly thing! It slashed my body, and then Bill shot fire at it, and… I don't really remember the rest, but Bill saved my life!"

"Twice!" Dipper added, holding up two fingers. "I wouldn't've believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes."

Mabel jumped off of her bed and knelt down next to Bill, whose new wounds were still seeping blood.

"Thank you so much, Bill." she said with a bright grin. "I can't believe you'd risk your own life for me like that, but I really appreciate it."

"Don't mention it." Bill replied weakly, giving her a small smile.

"Are you going to be OK?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine. My healing factor's already kicking in." he lifted his clothes to show the blood had stopped flowing. "It might take a bit longer, since these gashes are really deep."

"Thank you so much. I owe my life to you."

Mabel leaned down and gave Bill a kiss on the cheek. The demon's face flushed uncontrollably and his eye widened as he stared incredulously at the brunette, whose cheeks were also a bright shade of pink.

"KIDS, WE'RE HOME!" Grunkle Stan shouted from downstairs. "I BROUGHT FRIED CHICKEN! AND MR. DOWNER OVER HERE BROUGHT RAW FISH!"

"IT'S SUSHI!" Ford retorted. "IT'S CONSIDERED BRAIN FOOD!"

"I guess it's time for dinner." Dipper declared as he stood up. "Come on, Mabel. And thanks again, Bill. We really owe you a big one."

Mabel hooked her arms under Bill's armpits as Dipper grabbed his ankles, both of them lifting the blond demon up and dropping him onto the brunette's bed. It wasn't a very easy task, since Bill was heavier than he looked, but they managed with their combined strength.

Dipper cracked his back and gestured his sister to follow him as he walked out the door. Mabel gave Bill one last smile before walking out of the room with her brother. They could both hear their great-uncles arguing over which of the two meals they had bought was best, but as she followed Dipper down the creaky stairs towards the kitchen, Mabel couldn't stop a big smile from appearing on her face as she remembered what happened. The evil Bill Cipher, the insane dream demon who invaded Grunkle Stan's mind, stole Dipper's body and attempted to kill her and her brother countless times, had saved her from impending doom. The thought alone made her heart skip a beat.

Bill sighed to himself as he thought about what he had done, feeling his wounds closing at a painfully-slow rate. If he hadn't felt that Mabel was in danger and saved her when he did, not only would she have been killed, but his entire plan would've gone down the drain. Surprisingly enough, he had been more worried about the first consequence rather than the latter.

As soon he felt his strength had returned, he waved his hand over his clothes and made the blood stains vanish. He lifted himself up by the elbows and ran his fingers on his cheek as he thought about the kiss she had given him. He grinned as he remembered the warm feeling of her soft lips against his skin. It had felt so nice… He wondered if he could ever feel that again, if she would ever do it again.

* * *

Mabel tossed and turned in her bed. She was wide awake and it didn't look like she was going to fall asleep anytime soon. Every time she closed her eyes she saw the creature that had attacked her earlier, showing its razor-sharp teeth at her just before pouncing. She was tired and sore, but no matter how much she tried, she just couldn't fall asleep.

She sighed and stared up at the ceiling, allowing her mind to wander. She remembered how Bill had saved her and how grateful she was for that. But something was bothering her, something that she had just realized was off. A question that popped into her head and of which she needed to know the answer.

"Bill?" she whispered, moving towards the edge of the mattress and looking down. "Are you awake?"

"I am now." The demon yawned, his head appearing from under the bed. "What's wrong? Did you have another bad dream?"

"No, I just can't sleep. I keep seeing that thing's face staring at me."

"Want a glass of warm milk? I heard that helps." Bill snapped his fingers, the aforementioned item appearing in his hand.

"Actually, I think I need to talk to you. Think we can go somewhere a bit more… private?" She looked over at Dipper, who was sound asleep in his bed.

"Sure."

He floated over to her and gently placed his arm around her waist, holding her close. Mabel felt her cheeks burn slightly and closed her eyes as he snapped his fingers, feeling herself being transported. She opened her eyes when she felt they had stopped, and saw they were now on the roof. She couldn't help but gasp when she saw how beautiful the night sky looked. The moon was full and shining brightly, with hundreds of stars shimmering around it.

A gust of wind blew through them and Mabel involuntarily wrapped her arms around herself. She had forgotten she was still in her nightgown.

"Cold?" Bill asked.

"A little bit, yeah." Mabel replied as she rubbed her arms.

Before she knew it, Bill had unbuttoned his tailcoat and placed it over shoulders. She just stared at him in awe, whilst he just smiled at her.

"There. Wouldn't want you catching a cold." He stated and leaned back. "So what did you want to talk about?"

"It's about what happened earlier."

"You sure you wanna relive that? Any other person would've wanted to forget all about something like that."

"I don't, but I just wanted to ask you something about it. Something I didn't really understand."

"Shoot."

"Why did you save me?"

"What kind of question is that?" Bill cocked a brow, staring at the brunette with a quizzical expression. "I had to save you! You're were about to be mauled by a Wendigo!"

"I know, and I'm really thankful for that, but I need to know _why_." Mabel moved closer to the humanized demon, looking pleadingly into his eye. "You've always had it in for me and my brother, so why save me from certain death instead of just leaving me there?"

He looked down at the slightly pouting girl, her eyes shining brightly under the moonlight. Bill's heart almost melted just from looking at her.

"Well, I couldn't just let you die!" he crossed his arms and looked away from her, hoping she wouldn't notice the slight blush on his cheeks. "I love you too much for – "

He slapped his hands over his mouth, his eye widening and his previous blush spreading across every inch of his face when he realized what he had just said. Mabel just stared at him, her eyes also wide as she tried to process what she had just heard.

"Did you just say you… _love_ me?" she gasped.

Bill avoided her gaze at all cost. What had he just done? How could he let that slip?! If only he still had the power to travel through time, he could go back and stop himself from spilling the beans like that.

"I-I… I…" he stammered, stiffening when he felt Mabel move closer.

"Bill, it's OK. In a way, I already knew."

"You… did?" he inquired hesitantly, slowly turning to face her.

"You've been trying to put the moves on me all week." She smiled, a bright shade of pink on her cheeks. "At first I thought you were just playing with my emotions, but now I know you really mean it."

Bill gulped when Mabel moved even closer and placed a hand on his, their arms touching and their faces mere inches away. His cheeks felt so warm he was afraid she could feel the heat irradiating from him.

"And for the record… I feel the same way."

His eye widened so much it felt like it was about to pop out of its socket. Had he heard correctly? Did she just say she… reciprocated his feelings?!

"Y-you… you do?" he stuttered, staring incredulously at her.

"Uh-huh." She nodded, her blush increasing as she nervously tugged at the coat around her. "I almost can't believe it myself, but after all you've done, I've really come to like you. You seem to have really changed, and that's – "

She was suddenly interrupted when Bill closed the gap between them by pressing his lips against hers, cupping her cheeks to keep her in place. Her eyes widened almost to the size of dinner plates as she processed what was happening. Bill was kissing her. He was really kissing her!

She closed her eyes and returned the kiss, running her fingers through his hair. It had been so long since she the last time someone had kissed her like that, she had almost forgotten how good it felt. And Bill was a surprisingly good kisser. She wondered if he had done that before.

One of Bill's hands moved from her face to the small of her back, pressing her body against his. He had never felt such a wonderful sensation in all his years of existence. The feeling of Mabel's lips against his was intoxicating and he couldn't get enough of it.

Much to his dismay, Mabel had to pull back in order to catch her breath. She panted heavily with a large smile across her face, looking a bit dazed. Bill couldn't keep himself from chuckling at how adorable she looked.

"I take it you enjoyed that." He grinned, running his hand across her arm to hold her hand.

"You have no idea…" she replied sluggishly, unable to keep her eyes focused.

"We should head back. The sun's gonna rise soon." Bill declared as he looked over at the horizon, noticing how the color of the sky had begun to change. "Pine Tree will rip my head off if he wakes up and you're not in bed."

He snapped his fingers and teleported them back onto Mabel's bed. They laid there in each other's arms for what seemed like hours, listening to their steady heartbeats until they fell asleep, the brunette's head nuzzling against the demon's chest.


	8. The Truth Hurts (Day 7)

Mabel squirmed against her pillow, suddenly awaken from her deep slumber by a strange yet familiar sound. It sounded like a musical instrument of some sort. She was sure she had heard it before…

Wait… was someone playing a… ukulele?

She slowly opened her eyes, adjusting them to the bright light entering the room and something so shiny it almost blinded her. After blinking a few times she was finally able to see what it was, and when she did she had to make a great effort not to burst into laughter: Bill was sitting on the table by the window with his legs crossed, wearing a glittery pink tuxedo and picking the chords of a small ukulele.

_"_ _Your lipstick staaaaains…_

_On the front part of my_

_Left side braaaaain…_

_I knew I wouldn't forget you,_

_And so I went and let you_

_Blow my miiiiiiiiind…"_

Mabel laughed and sat up as the demon did a front flip and landed with one knee on the floor.

_"_ _Your sweet moonbeeaaam…_

_The smell of you in every_

_Single dream I dreeaaam…_

_I knew when we collided,_

_You're the one I have decided_

_Who's one of my kiiiiiiiiind…"_

He walked across the room as he sang, strolling up the wall and up to the ceiling, where he stood upright as he kept playing the tiny string instrument.

_"_ _Heeey soul sister,_

_Aaiiin't that Mr. Mister_

_On the radio, stereo,_

_The way you move ain't fair, you know."_

He did another flip and landed on his knees right next to Mabel's bed, flashing her a bright grin.

_"_ _Heeey soul sister,_

_III don't wanna miss_

_A single thing you doooooooooooooo…_

_Tonight."_

He finished by giving Mabel a small peck on the cheek, to which she giggled and blushed.

"I'm not sure how to feel about this." Dipper muttered from the other side of the room, having been woken up by Bill's music as well.

"How about happy, like me?" Mabel replied, pulling Bill into a hug.

"I can try, but it might take a while." He pushed himself up and stretched his arms forward. "I hope you realize you technically committed copyright infringement, Bill."

"Whatever. I basically launched those guys, so they owe me." Bill shrugged, twirling the ukulele in the air and turning it back into his cane.

"This was such a nice surprise!" said Mabel, releasing the blond from her grip and looking up at him. "What's the occasion?"

"I'm glad you ask." Bill took off his hat and pulled out a card, which he handed to the brunette. "This'll clear everything up, milady."

"'The fair Lady Mabelton is hereby invited to a lunch date with the dashing Mr. William D. Cipher, Esquire'." She read the elegant calligraphy on the laminated invitation aloud, releasing a chuckle when she was done. "Fancy!"

"Modest, much?" Dipper asked sarcastically.

"Everything written there is a hundred percent true and approved by a notary." He declared before turning back to Mabel and holding her hand, offering her a flower he pulled out from inside his coat. "What doth thee sayeth, milady? Wilt thee grant me the pleasure of thy company?"

"I have no idea what you just said, but I'd love to have lunch with you!" Mabel took the flower and leaned in, giving the demon a quick kiss on the lips and making him smile widely. "Are we going anywhere special?"

"Well, I had thought about taking you to the Fancy Dimension, but then I remembered my powers are limited, and whatnot. So we'll have to make do with that wishy-washy diner you took me to the other day."

"Yup, nothing says 'romance' like lunch at Greasy's Diner." Dipper commented as he ran a hand through his messy brown locks.

"Well, I think it's a great idea. I can't wait!" Mabel gasped. "I need to figure out what to wear!"

"Easy Mabel, we didn't even have breakfast yet." Dipper reminded her as he stood up. "Which reminds me that we better head down before Stan burns another meal. I think I already smell smoke."

"I think you're right." Mabel sniffed the air. "Smells like Stancakes."

"Not again…" the brunet sighed exasperatedly, heading towards the door. "Come on, let's try and salvage them before he makes us eat them."

"Shall we meet here again at noon?" Mabel inquired, batting her eyelashes at the demon.

"We shall." Bill replied, taking her hand up to his mouth and kissing it. "I'll be counting the minutes until we meet again."

"Oh Bill, you're such a smooth operator." Mabel giggled, her cheeks a bright shade of pink.

"Alright, already!" Dipper called out angrily, gripping the doorknob. "I'd like to actually have food in my stomach before throwing up."

Mabel hopped off of her bed just as Dipper opened the door, turning around to blow a kiss at Bill before following her brother downstairs. The demon pretended to catch the kiss in midair and slapped it onto his cheek, afterwards attempting to wink at the brunette, although coming from him it just looked like a forced blink. Mabel suppressed a giggle and walked out of the room.

Bill rose to his feet and flopped onto Mabel's unmade bed with a content sigh. He had never felt so good in all his years of existence. His recently-acquired heart felt so full of joy, it seemed like it would explode at any moment. It was such a good feeling, he never wanted it to end.

He never thought he would grow so fond of another living being, let alone one whom he had sworn vengeance against. But there was something about Mabel, something that made him want to be a better creature, something that made him want to show her how unique and special she was.

But how?

* * *

Dipper released a deep yawn as he sat on the toilet, sleepily rubbing his unshaven chin. His stubble was beginning to annoy him, and he wondered if he should shave it off. On one hand he had been told it looked good on him, and, truth be told, he had seen results. But on the other hand, taking care of it was too much trouble, and his face had never felt so itchy. Maybe he really should shave and be done with it…

He rubbed his left eye as he reached for the toilet paper with his other hand. He glanced at the paper in his hand when he saw something he definitely wasn't expecting to see: the sheet he had grabbed had a face on it. But not just any face, a face with only one eye.

"Pine Tree, I need your help." The toilet paper told him, its voice all too familiar to the brunet.

"What do you want, Bill?" Dipper groaned as the demon disappeared from the toilet paper and reappeared in front of him.

"I want to give Shooting Star something special, something that will blow her away!" he threw his hands up for effect. "But I'm all out of ideas. Any suggestions?"

"Wow, the all-knowing Bill Cipher needs help from me, a mere mortal?" Dipper raised a brow, grinning mischievously at the blond. "That's new."

"Don't push it, kid." Bill threatened, pointing a finger menacingly at the boy. "I still have ways to hurt you. Now, will you help me or not?"

"Sure, whatever." The brunet rolled his eyes. "You see, the thing about Mabel is that she's easily impressed. You could get her just about anything and she would still love it to bits. But, if you want to do something _really_ impressive, you should try to surprise her with something really meaningful."

"I see…" Bill muttered, tapping in chin in thought. "But what would that be? A new pet? Clothes? A picture of myself?" he snapped his fingers and a framed picture of himself appeared in his hands, one where he was grinning at the camera as he lied in front of a lit fireplace in a provocative pose with neither his coat or shirt on.

"Definitely not that." Dipper replied, pushing the photo away. "Just get her something she really needs. You know, something you know she could really use."

"Something she really needs…" Bill pondered, releasing a gasp afterwards. "That's it! I know just the thing! She'll be so surprised!" he floated up to the boy and patted his head. "Thanks, kid!"

"No problem. Now, could you please leave? I'd like to take a shower."

"Oh, you don't have to feel uncomfortable around me. It wouldn't be the first time I saw you naked." Bill snickered, tousling Dipper's hair. "Gotta fly. Toodles!"

Bill disappeared in a flash, leaving Dipper staring at the spot where he was. The brunet's face felt unbelievably hot as he remembered what Bill had just said. He made a mental note to shower in his underwear from now on.

* * *

Bill was gone the rest of the morning, and when he returned he was told that Mabel was in the bathroom getting ready for their lunch date. Dipper wanted to know where he had been, but the demon seemed to have sworn secrecy and refused to tell him, implying that he would 'ruin the surprise'.

After kicking the brunet out of his own room, Bill decided to tend to his own appearance, conjuring up a table mirror and a comb with which he changed his hair into various different styles. None of them seemed to look good on him, so he just went with his original hairdo. He combed it neatly, making sure not to leave any imperfections, and when he was done he grinned at his own reflection, very pleased with the results.

"Aw yeah, lookin' good!" he commented, wiggling his eyebrows at the mirror on the table.

From the corner of his eye he noticed the sock puppet Mabel made of herself sitting on her bedpost. He made it levitate by pointing a finger towards it and pulled it towards him until it fell on his right hand.

"Oh Bill, you are so amazing! I love you so much!" he faked a girly voiced as he moved the puppet's mouth. "Hohoh, Shooting Star, stop…" he chuckled in his normal voice, pretending to be embarrassed. "Kiss me, you handsome devil!" he said in his fake voice, proceeding to press the puppet's mouth against his, making kissing sounds.

"CIPHER!"

Bill yelped loudly and almost fell backwards, launching the puppet into the air. He glanced at the mirror, the source of the voice that shouted his name, and saw the last thing he wanted to see at that moment.

"Urgh, Time Baby…" He grumbled, crossing his arms. "Your sense of timing is incredible."

"Silence! I'm only here to know your progress." Time Baby declared, narrowing his eyes. "I hope you've managed to make someone fall in love with you. Your deadline ends at midnight."

"Don't get your diapers in a bunch. I already took care of that."

"Yeah, we're doing fine, mom." Dipper spoke into his phone as he walked up the stairs towards the attic. "No, Stan and Ford haven't killed each other yet. If they do, you'll be the first one to know." He chuckled as he grabbed the doorknob.

"I hope for your own sake that you're not lying to me."

Dipper froze when he heard a deep booming voice coming from inside his room. He knew Bill was in there, but he also knew that wasn't his voice. He had heard his angry voice, and that sounded nothing like it. Although it sounded strangely familiar…

"I gotta go now, mom." He spoke in a lower tone, so as to not alert whoever was in there. "Yeah, love you too."

Dipper ended the call and slowly opened the door just enough for him to peek into without being detected. The scene he saw was very unusual: Time Baby was talking to Bill through a mirror, and he didn't look too pleased.

"Of course not! Who do you take me for?" Bill snapped, lifting a palm in front of the overlord's face to silence him before he could respond. "Don't answer that."

"So you really managed to make someone fall in love with you?" Time Baby asked, to which Bill nodded.

Dipper gasped; what exactly was going one in there? What did Time Baby mean by that? Whatever that was about, he didn't like it. Especially because it seemed to involve Mabel.

He realized he still had his phone in his hand, which gave him an idea. He quickly pointed the phone's camera at the two and clicked the red button on the screen to start recording.

"You can bet your pacifiers on it." Bill confirmed, a proud smirk on his face. "And I already got her to admit it."

"We'll just see about that. When the clock strikes midnight, I will transport both you and the female you managed to infatuate back to my realm so she can speak for herself on that matter." Time Baby declared, looking more serious than ever. "But if what you say turns out to not be true…"

"Yes, I know, I'll be annihilated immediately, yadda yadda…" Bill grumbled as he rolled his eye.

"Well, not immediately. I'll still be asleep at that time, and if don't get a good night's sleep I'll be very cranky."

"Sure, whatever. But I hope you keep up your end of the deal."

"I am a baby of my word. If you did manage to make someone fall in love with you during the time you've been there, I will reconsider your sentence. But that doesn't necessarily mean you'll be set free."

"I know, I know…" Bill sighed exasperatedly. "Can you go now? I have a very important appointment to get to."

"Very well. I will see you in a few hours."

Time Baby disappeared from the mirror and Bill released a deep sigh. The demon picked up the puppet he had dropped and carefully set it back in its place, affectionately running hand through its head. He quickly adjusted his bowtie and vanished into thin air, a heavy silence falling upon the room.

Dipper opened the door the rest of the way, an expression of pure horror on his face. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. I shouldn't be so hard to believe, considering this was Bill he was talking about, but he was still shocked to have seen what he saw. Part of him must've believed that the demon really had changed, or else he wouldn't've been so surprised with all that.

His astonishment slowly turned to anger as he tightened the grasp around his phone. He wanted to kill Bill for using his sister like that, for getting her hopes up for nothing. Oh, how he would enjoy torturing him.

"GLOMP!"

Dipper nearly jumped out of his own skin when he felt a pair of arms wrap around his body, releasing an embarrassingly-girlish shriek. He relaxed slightly when he heard his sister giggle.

"Nice scream, bro bro." Mabel chuckled, tightening her grip around her brother. "I love it when your voice cracks like that."

"You almost gave me a heart attack!" he declared, wiggling his way out of her grasp.

"Sorry about that, I just wanted your opinion on how I look." She said as she twirled around, the skirt of her pale-blue sundress swaying along. "Be honest. On a scale of 'cute' to 'totes adorbs', what do you think?"

It pained Dipper to see his sister so happy, unaware that she was being played like that. He remembered the phone in his hand and glanced down at it, the footage he had just recorded awaiting to be seen. He had to tell her. He couldn't just step aside and watch her be heartbroken later. As much as it would hurt to see her hopes be crushed, he knew he was doing the right thing.

"Have you seen Bill, by the way?" Mabel inquired as she looked around. "It's almost time for our lunch date."

"Mabel…" Dipper sighed sadly as he brought his phone up to his face. "There's something you need to see."

* * *

Bill materialized in front of the attic door, a confident smile on his face. He smoothed down his blond hair and adjusted his tailcoat one final time. He was ready and really looking forward to that date. He gave the door two knocks and turned the doorknob.

"Oh Shooting Staaaaar…" he sang as he opened the door. "Are you ready for – "

He barely had time to duck to avoid a book being thrown at his face. It flew over him, missing his head by just a couple of inches.

"HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME?!"

Bill was surprised to see Mabel so angry. Tears were streaming down her face, smearing the makeup she had applied. Her face was twisted in anger; it was almost frightening to look at. He glanced to his left over at Dipper, who was sitting on his bed and not looking very pleased either.

"I'm sorry, could you be a little more specific?" he laughed nervously.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU WERE JUST USING ME!" Mabel shouted, throwing a hairbrush at the demon. "ALL I AM IS PART OF PLAN TO KEEP YOU ALIVE?!"

Bill's heart sunk and his smile fell into a frown. She had found out about his deal with Time Baby. But… how?

"W-wha…" he stammered, involuntarily taking a step back. "H-how did you – "

"I saw everything." Dipper stated, walking up towards his sister and placing an arm around her shoulders. "I saw you talking to Time Baby about your deal."

Bill swallowed the lump forming in his throat. He had never felt so nervous in his life.

"That's why you came here in the first place isn't it?" the brunet continued. "Because you thought Mabel would be an easy target? You disgust me."

"I thought… I thought we actually had something!" Mabel exclaimed before burying her face in her hands, her brother gently patting her back. "How could I have been so stupid?"

"But… Shooting Star…" Bill muttered, fighting to hold back his own tears.

"I TOLD YOU TO STOP CALLING ME THAT!"

Mabel launched herself at the demon, throwing punches at his chest. Bill simply watched her unloading her rage at him. Her blows didn't hurt him physically, but it seemed that every time she struck his chest, his heart would ache more and more.

"Just go!" she barked, wiping her runny nose with the back of her hand. "I never want to see you again."

"But I – "

"JUST GO!" she snapped and pointed at the exit. "GET OUT OF MY LIFE!"

"I think you better leave." Dipper stated as he neared the two. "You've done enough already. And I think the fate you're about to receive is the perfect punishment for your actions."

Bill looked from the sobbing girl to the angry boy repeatedly, feeling completely helpless. Not only had he lost the only person he had ever loved, he was about to be eliminated from existence. Dipper was right; he did deserve that.

"I understand…" he sighed as he turned around, grabbing the doorknob. He turned his head to look at the twins one last time. "Goodbye."

He slowly closed the door behind him, the clicking of the latch bolt echoing painfully through the room. Mabel ran up to her bed and threw herself onto it, pressing her face against her pillow as she continued to sob heavily. Dipper could only sigh as he sat beside her and soothingly ran his hand through her hair. He hated seeing her like this, but she had to know.

Bill's lip trembled as he stood outside the twins' bedroom, tears pricking his eye. He tried shaking his sadness away, but to no avail. He couldn't believe all he had built in a week could fall apart in a matter of minutes. He knew what he was getting himself into when he allowed his feelings to get in the way of his plans, but it hurt just as bad nonetheless.

He needed to make things right, even if he was going to be eliminated. He conjured up a video camera and teleported himself out of there. He had one last thing to do before meeting his fate.


	9. Rescuing a Demon

Mabel was completely devastated. She didn't leave the room for the rest of the day and refused to see anyone. Dipper had to make up an excuse for her, saying that she wasn't feeling very well. Stan didn't think much of it, but Ford insisted on examining her. Dipper was able to dissuade him after many tries, stating he would take care of her. Part of him knew he was lying. He had no idea how to tend to his sister; he had never seen her so depressed.

She refused to leave her bed while she was locked in the room, all through the afternoon and the following morning. Dipper was really starting to get worried about her. She hadn't eaten since the previous morning and he feared that her health would start to deteriorate soon.

"Come on Mabel, you have to eat something." He gently shook her as he tried to persuade her. "You haven't eaten in over twenty four hours."

"I told you I'm not hungry." She mumbled sadly, her face buried into her pillow as she refused to look her brother in the eyes. "Just leave me alone."

"I'm worried about you, Mabel." Dipper sighed as he started to walk around the room. "I've never seen you so down before. I know what Bill did was messed up, but you have to move on."

"Easy for you to say. You've never had your heart torn into a bajillion pieces."

"No, but remember that I know what it's like to have loved and lost." He ran a hand through his hair as he released another sigh. "Believe it or not, I was also shocked to find out that Bill was lying all along. Even I was stupid enough to fall for – Whoa!"

Dipper nearly stumbled forward when he tripped over something on the floor. Looking down, he saw it was a video camera. Dipper didn't remember seeing it there before, especially not one with a sticky note that said 'Play Me' on it.

"What the…" Dipper said as he knelt down to grab the camera. "This isn't mine. That's weird…"

He pulled open the monitor, finding the camera was still on. He pressed play and gasped when the first thing he saw was Bill attempting to settle the camera down straight in front of him. From what he could understand, the demon had recorded that on the roof.

"Useless human contraptions…" Bill muttered under his breath as he turned the camera a bit. "Is this thing even on?"

"Bill…?" Mabel whispered, lifting her head from her pillow and glancing over at her brother.

"Looks like he recorded this after he left." Dipper commented, noticing the time and date on the corner of the screen. "But… why?"

"OK, that's good enough." Bill declared before taking a few steps back and sitting down, his whole body now in the frame. He cleared his throat and tapped his fingers against his knees, visibly nervous and indecisive about what to say. "Dear Shooting Star… By the time you see this I'll probably be…" he gulped before continuing. "…dead. Funny how life plays tricks on you, isn't it? One moment you're an all-powerful immortal dream demon with plans to rule the universe, and the other you're making deals with an overgrown newborn to spare your life in exchange for making some random person fall in love with you. You know, when I chose you as my target, I thought I only did it because I knew you were vulnerable enough to manipulate and because I thought it would be the perfect way to get back at you after foiling my plans so many times. But now I realize there was something more to it, something I didn't understand until it was too late."

Mabel climbed out of her bed to join her brother on the floor and watch Bill's video closer, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand as she did so. She could sense whatever Bill wanted to say was important, and she wanted to hear every last word of it.

"It's true, the only reason I returned was because of my deal with Time Baby, in which I had to make someone fall in love with me in seven days, or else I would be eliminated. You can see how well that went." He released a chuckle, then returned to his serious demeanor. "I can't even begin to say how sorry I am for deceiving you like this." He paused for a second and looked down at his lap. The twins could both see how hard he was trying not to break into tears, which coming from Bill would be quite a shocker. "You probably don't believe a word of what I'm saying by now, and I don't blame you for that, but I just wanted you to know that my feelings towards you were true. I was even going to surprise you with a gift to show you how much I cared. Look under your bed."

Mabel leaned down and glanced beneath her bed, gasping when she saw a large box. She pulled it out and proceeded to tear away the wrapping paper with her shooting star symbol all around it, releasing an even bigger gasp when she saw what it was.

A sewing machine. Bill had gotten her a sewing machine.

"I got you that because I knew you would be needing a new one when you got into the fashion program." Bill continued, trying his best to smile. "The girl at the mall said that was the best sewing machine in the market. And yes, actually I bought it, believe it or not!" he paused again to scratch the back of his head. "With some money I took from your brother's wallet..."

"Hey!" Dipper exclaimed as he reached for his wallet, which was basically empty now.

"But don't worry, I plan on paying back every penny!" Bill added, lifting his palms in front of him in a defensive fashion. "Or I would if I weren't sentenced to death…" He was silent for a few seconds, smiling sadly at the camera. "I hope you like it, and please remember me whenever you use it. I wish I had the time to make things right…" he sighed, a single tear running down his eye. "I… I love you, Shooting Star."

The demon lifted himself up and walked up to the camera to press the button to stop recording. The twins kept staring at the screen long after the video stopped, trying to process what they had just seen.

"Wow…" Dipper finally spoke up, his eyes wide in disbelief. "That was… unexpected."

"He loves me…" Mabel whispered in awe, fresh tears running down her face. "He really loves me!"

"I guess he really does. I can't believe he would open up like that." Dipper smiled, smile which immediately turned into a frown as he realized something. "And now he's about to be erased from existence!"

"We have to save him! But… how?"

"Don't worry, I have just the thing."

Dipper crawled towards his bed and reached underneath it, pulling out a cardboard box labeled 'DO NOT TOUCH'.

"Not this again…" Mabel sighed exasperatedly, throwing her head back. "I thought you were over Wendy."

"I am. This is the same box, but the contents are different." He took off the lid and presented the contents to Mabel, an assortment of random objects filling the box up to the brim.

"What is all that junk?"

"Mementos I've gathered from our adventures here in Gravity Falls. I have one for each of them. Norman's hoodie, Love God's anti-love potion, and even the, uh… loincloth I wore during my manly training with the Manotaurs." he chuckled embarrassedly as he pulled out the aforementioned item.

Mabel scanned the things in the box and noticed one item that triggered her curiosity: a broken hand mirror.

"What's this?" she asked as she pulled the mirror out, examining it closely.

"That's the silver mirror I used to trap that ghost that was haunting Pacifica's house." He replied as he rummaged through the box's contents.

"Oh yeah, that night was crazy." Mabel giggled.

She turned the mirror over and suddenly fell silent when she noticed there was writing on the back. It read: 'Thanks for the help. I had a great time. XOXO Pacifica.'

"Hey, did you know Pacifica wrote you a note on the back of the mirror?" Mabel pointed out, showing it to her brother.

"Oh yeah, how about that…" Dipper chuckled, his cheeks reddening.

"Wait a minute…" Mabel said as she narrowed her eyes. "You already knew that, didn't you?"

Dipper simply kept digging into the box, the blush on his cheeks increasing.

"Oh my gosh, you did!" she exclaimed, smiling giddily. "That's why you kept this! You're into Pacifica!"

"T-that's ridiculous!" Dipper retorted, looking utterly outraged. "W-why would you even think that? Pacifica and I have nothing in common. There is absolutely no way I could be into a girl like her."

Mabel knew he was lying; there was no denying the crimson tone on his face. She decided to play with his emotions a little bit more.

"You know, I ran into Pacifica a few days ago." She stated as her twin kept going through his box of mementos, a playful smirk on her face. "And guess what! She asked about you."

"She did?" he finally lifted his gaze from the box, a surprised look on his face.

"Eeyup." Mabel nodded. "And I could tell she was interested, if you know what I mean."

"R-really?" he stuttered, nervously scratching his arm. "Oh, wow, I never thought she would be…"

"Too bad you don't like her, though." Mabel shrugged, faking disinterest. "I'll just have to go ahead and tell her that there's no hope for you two. It'll break her heart, but what're you gonna do…"

"Well, I wouldn't say I don't like her…"

"GOTCHA!" she yelled and pointed at her brother, making him jump back with her sudden burst of joy. "I knew you liked her! There's no fooling the world's greatest matchmaker!"

"I should've seen that coming…" Dipper murmured to himself before going back to searching through the things in his box. "Well, I'm glad your happiness his back, but we still need to save Bill. And to do that we'll need… this!" He pulled out what looked a small grey wrist watch, although it showed no time.

"What is that?"

"It's a communicator. Blendin gave it to me as a thank you present after we helped him get his job back." Dipper answered as he strapped the communicator around his wrist. "He said that we could use it if we ever needed his help with anything."

"Wait, how come you never told me about that?"

"Because I was afraid you'd do something childish and irresponsible with it."

"Dipper! I'm appalled!" Mabel exclaimed, placing her hands on her hips. "How could you think I would do such a thing?"

"Could you guarantee me that you'd never use this to make prank phone calls to the future?"

Mabel scowled, but remained silent. She crossed her arms and looked away.

"No…" she grumbled, avoiding her brother's gaze.

"I thought so. Now, let's see if I can figure out how to use this."

* * *

Time Baby yawned as he rubbed his eyes, still feeling sleepy. He wanted to have slept longer, but being the all-powerful ruler of the world demanded him to follow a strict schedule. Especially today that he had a very important issue to take care of. The overlord watched as one of his robot servants flew over and brought him his pacifier, which he quickly pulled out of its metal claws.

"Let's do this." Time Baby told the robot. "I need a nap."

Time Baby took the pacifier into his mouth and started sucking on it as the robot flew off. It returned not long after, pushing a sad-looking Bill Cipher in front of it. The demon was back to his original one-eyed triangle form and had on the shackles that blocked his powers.

"Well Cipher, looks like you've returned empty-handed." Time Baby grinned after pulling his pacifier out of his mouth. "Do you anything to say for yourself?"

"No. Let's just get this over with…" Bill grumbled, crossing his arms.

"I must say, for a minute there I actually believed you when you said you had been successful. But I should've known you'd fail. I mean, who would ever fall in love with someone like you?"

Bill watched in anger as the overlord laughed at him, wanting to strangle the living daylights out of the overgrown meat sack. He already felt bad enough for having lost the only one who would ever love him; this was just adding insult to injury.

"Look, you proved your point! I'm completely hopeless!" Bill snapped, his natural yellow complexion turning red. "I get it, no one will ever love me, so shut up already!"

Time Baby fell silent as he gazed at the demon, furrowing his brow at his insolence. He was really going to enjoy getting rid of him once and for all.

"I see this experience didn't change you at all. Well then…" Time Baby's eyes glowed red as he charged his laser vision. "Farewell, Bill Cipher. I wish I could say it has been a pleasure knowing you."

Bill closed his eye tightly, waiting to be destroyed. It was only a matter of seconds until the all-powerful dream demon Bill Cipher would cease to exist. The weird part was that, after feeling so heart-broken and miserable, he didn't really care anymore. He was ready to vanish from existence.

"STOP!"

Bill's eye snapped open when he heard that familiar voice, almost not believing his non-existent ears. He turned around and gasped as his suspicions were confirmed: there were Mabel and Dipper, along with the Time Anomaly Removal Crew operative he had possessed a few years ago to trick Mabel into giving him the interdimensional rift.

"Sh-Shooting Star? Pine Tree?" he stuttered in disbelief, glancing from one twin to the other. "What're you doing here? And exactly _how_ did you get here?"

"Blendin brought us." Dipper replied, pointing at the heavyset man in the grey clothes. "He owed us a favor."

"I-I'd like to point out that I was reluctant to do this." Blendin interjected. "I-I still haven't forgotten what you did to me five years ago."

"What is the meaning of this?" Time Baby inquired, observing the three humans. "I was in the middle of an annihilation."

"We apologize, Time Baby, but believe it or not, Bill doesn't deserve to die." Dipper stated, gesturing towards the yellow triangle.

"I disagree." The overlord retorted. "He had one task to complete in order to remain alive and he failed. He deserves nothing more than to be obliterated."

"I object, Your Honor!" Mabel shouted as she stepped forward.

"He's not a judge, Mabel." Dipper whispered to his sister, who just ignored him.

"Bill did keep his end of the deal. He did manage to make someone fall in love with him. Me!"

"Are you saying you… _love_ him?" Time Baby gasped.

"That's right!" Mabel knelt down and wrapped her arms around Bill. "I love this man! Triangle… demon… thing? Whatever he is, I love him to bits! I never thought I would fall for him, but he managed to win my heart. And now nothing can change the way I feel about him."

"And that means you can't obliterate him." Dipper added with a smirk.

"I… suppose that's true." Time Baby sighed in annoyance. "Nothing would've given me more satisfaction than to finally get rid of you, but I guess a deal is a deal. Bill Cipher, you are free."

The shackles around Bill's wrists were opened and fell onto the ground with a loud clank. The demon quickly turned around and returned Mabel's embrace.

"Thank you so much, Shooting Star!" he said, squeezing her tighter.

"My pleasure." Mabel replied, wincing when the demon's grasp around her tightened. "Ow, your edges hurt!"

"Oh, sorry about that." He released her and took a step back, changing back into his human form. "Better?"

"Much better."

The brunette grabbed him by his bowtie and pulled him down, crashing his lips against hers. The blond responded by holding onto her waist and pulling her up to deepen the kiss, whilst Mabel held onto his shoulders.

"Yup, I'm never gonna get used to that." Dipper commented to himself as he adverted his gaze from his sister and the demon.


	10. Two and a Half Months Later

After being set free Bill regained all of his powers. Time Baby was clearly impressed with how much the demon had changed thanks to Mabel's influence when he granted him his freedom. The twins, however, didn't let him off the hook so easily. Dipper demanded he paid him back the ninety dollars he stole from him to buy Mabel's gift, and his sister, remembering Bill's promise to allow her to punish him any way she liked if he ever deceived her somehow, forced him to model the clothes she made for the Admissions Committee. He spent so much time wearing the outfits as Mabel fitted them and got so many needles accidentally stuck on him he was starting to lose it. And he would've lost his mind in an instant if it weren't for his girlfriend kissing his 'boo-boos', as she called them. He hated to admit it, but he really liked that.

Two and a half months later came the day they both loved and hated at the same time: the last day of summer, AKA their birthday. At the end of the day they would return home to start their studies and head their separate ways. It was upsetting, both the splitting up and leaving Gravity Falls, but they knew there was no avoiding it.

As soon as they woke up and entered the kitchen they were surprised by Stan, Ford and Soos, who had all prepared them a party to celebrate their eighteenth birthday and to say goodbye to the twins. They had plenty of presents, a surprisingly large cake, considering how stingy and stubborn Stan was, and all their friends were there. Well, _Mabel's_ friends were there. Grenda spent the whole time stuffing her face with cake and other snacks, Candy was showing off her new robot boyfriend, which clearly needed some repairs, and Pacifica and Dipper spent half of the party awkwardly avoiding each other, and the other half catching up. Mabel had no idea when they had begun talking, but she was happy they did.

Mabel was a bit sad she didn't see Bill all day. She knew he couldn't show himself when Ford was in the room, but she missed his company. She was surprised Dipper and her had managed to hide Bill in the attic for such a long time without Ford finding out.

The party ended not long after lunch time, and as the two older men and Soos were left with the arduous task of cleaning up, the twins headed upstairs to pack their bags, which they did slowly and unwillingly.

"I can't believe we have to go back home already." Mabel groaned, flopping onto her bed. "Summer went by too quickly."

"Doesn't it always?" Dipper sighed as he folded up one of his shirts. "I know it sucks that we have to leave already, but we have no other choice. Our classes start next week."

Mabel blew a raspberry in annoyance. Sure, she was excited to start college, even though she still had to present her creations to the Admissions Committee, but she wished she had more time to stay in Gravity Falls. Especially now that she and Bill were in a relationship.

"By the way, where's Bill?" she asked, propping herself up on her elbows. "I haven't seen him all day."

"Beats me, I haven't seen him either. And I'd think he'd like to see you off."

"Maybe he's… busy?"

"With what? He told Time Baby he'd never go back to his evil demonic ways, which I think gives him a whole lot of free time."

The brunet's phone buzzed in his pocket, his eyes widening when he pulled it out and looked at the screen.

"I, uh… I have to go… do something." He stammered, his face reddening as he made his way towards the door. "I'll be right back."

Mabel watched dully as her brother left the room, forcing herself off the bed to continue packing. Dipper was almost done, but she still had to pack all of her clothes.

She lazily walked up to the set of drawers and opened the top one, jumping back with a yelp when a generous amount of confetti and streamers exploded onto her face.

"Surprise!" Bill exclaimed as he jumped out from inside the drawers, blowing a party horn as he floated in midair. "Happy birthday! _Mazel tov_!"

"Oh, Bill! You shouldn't have!" Mabel said as she pulled some streamers out of her hair.

"Oh, but I did!" he stated as he lowered himself onto the floor. "I couldn't show up at your party because Sixer and his idiot brother were there, so I had to make it up to you somehow."

"You're the best!" Mabel grinned, hugging the demon tightly.

"No, _you're_ the best, birthday girl!" Bill remarked as he returned the hug. "So, eighteen, eh? You've finally reached legal age. You know what that means." He smirked slyly and wiggled his eyebrows.

"Bill!" Mabel looked up at him with an irritated expression, her cheeks a bright shade of pink.

"Kidding!" He chuckled and narrowed his eyes. "Or am I?"

"Stop!" she giggled, playfully shoving him.

"Fine, fine…" his glanced drifted towards the open suitcase by her bed. "Need help packing?"

"Please."

Bill snapped his fingers and every single piece of clothing Mabel had in the room flew into her suitcase, neatly folded and fitted into bag so it wouldn't take up any unnecessary room. Once all her clothes were in there, the suitcase closed itself and turned over so she could easily pick it up.

"Thanks. I really didn't want to do it myself." She sighed sadly as she sat down on her bed. "I hate that I have to leave."

"I hate it too, but you don't have a choice, do you?" Bill said as he took a seat next to her.

"No… But what about you?"

"What _about_ me?"

"If I'm leaving, that means I won't be seeing you anymore." She whimpered, resting her head on her hands. "I don't want that."

"That doesn't necessarily have to happen."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, now that I have all of my powers back and a butt-load of free time in my handsome human hands…" he pretended to inspect his nails as he explained himself. "…I've decided to go back with you."

"You want to come back home with me?" Mabel gasped and sat up straight.

"And then to your college dorm." He added with a bright grin.

Mabel squealed and hugged him even tighter than before, the demon cringing when he felt his ribs crack.

"Wait, how are you gonna hide away from everyone?" Mabel inquired, raising her head to meet his gaze.

"Hey, you and your brother managed to hide me in this crummy attic all summer." He gestured around the room to emphasize his point. "Plus I can just hang out in the mindscape while you're busy."

"OK, but how do I call you when I want to see you? Do I say your name three times or something?"

"No, I'm not Beetlejuice. Although I did hang out with him once. He's a really fun guy." He chuckled to himself. "Don't worry, I'll know when you're alone. I see everything, remember?"

"How could I forget?" she giggled as she stood up. "Well, I should start taking my luggage downstairs."

"Already?" he whined with a pout. "But I haven't even given you your present yet!"

"Bill, you didn't have to get me anything! You already gave me a sewing machine."

"I gave you that to surprise you when we started dating. This…" he snapped his fingers and a wrapped box appeared in his hands, which he handed to her. "…is to congratulate you for becoming one year older."

"Well, you still didn't have to get me anything."

She took the present from his hands and proceeded to unwrap it. Under the wrapping paper was a package that was roughly the size of a shoebox. She took the lid off of it and a gasp escaped her lips. She took out what was inside the box: a yellow sweater with a brick pattern around it. The fabric seemed to glow a golden hue. It was absolutely gorgeous.

"It's beautiful! Where did you get it?" she asked as she held the sweater in front of her.

"I made it." Bill declared with a proud expression.

"I love it!" she said as she slipped it on over her rainbow tank top, twirling around when she was done. "How do I look?"

"Stunning, as always." He whispered into her ear as he hugged from behind.

She turned herself around and returned his embrace, burying her face in his chest. He rested his chin atop her head, taking in the sweet scent of her hair. He inhaled deeply and exhaled contentedly.

"What?" she asked without moving from her spot.

"You smell nice." He declared with a sigh.

"That's weird!" She giggled, playfully pushing him away. She picked up her backpack and swung it over her shoulders, afterwards picking up her suitcase. "I guess I'll see you at home?"

"Sure thing. I might even join you on the bus, if I feel like it."

She shot him a smile and gave him a quick peck on the lips before making her way out of the room. She sighed happily as she walked down the stairs, thinking about Bill's promise to join her when she returned home and when she started college. She couldn't wait to spend time with him. She wished he didn't have to hide away and only show up when he was sure she was alone, but she knew that was the right thing to do. What would her parents say if they ever found out their daughter was dating a demon?

She heard a ruckus coming from inside the kitchen. Stan and Ford were arguing again about who-knows-what and Soos was trying to calm the two old men down, clearly failing miserably. She decided to ignore them for the time being, crossing the living room and the gift shop until she was outside.

She stood on the porch as she observed her surroundings. Stan's car was outside, waiting to drive the twins to the bus station, but there was no one else there. Since she had managed to pack quickly, all thanks to Bill, Stan and Ford wouldn't be coming out for another few minutes, but she was surprised Dipper wasn't there waiting for her. Come to think of it, he never _did_ mention where he was going. So where was he?

Her thoughts were interrupted when a piece of paper fell at her feet from above. She immediately looked up and saw Bill waving at her from the attic window. She smiled up at him and knelt down to pick up the paper he had dropped, reading what her boyfriend had written in his sloppy handwriting.

_Check Sixer's room. ;)_

_-Bill_

She looked up again, mouthing the words 'thank you' to the blond before reentering the Shack. She headed towards the room where she and Dipper had discovered the electron carpet, which had become Ford's room when he returned from the portal. She was surprised to see the door was slightly ajar, since Ford would always close it. She gently pulled it forward, just enough to peek inside, her eyes instantly widening when she saw what was happening in there: Dipper was inside with Pacifica, the two sitting on the couch and engaged in quite an intense make out session.

Mabel's initial surprise was quickly replaced with joy, having to repress her laughter. She couldn't avoid snorting as she pressed her hands against her mouth, which caused the smooching couple to open their eyes and turn their heads towards her in shock.

"M-Mabel?!" Dipper's voice cracked humorously in embarrassment, both his and Pacifica's cheeks bright red. "How long have you been there?"

"Long enough." She smirked, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "If you two lovebirds are done sucking face, I think Sir Dippingsauce needs to finish packing."

She heard Dipper groan as she turned around and walked away, giggling giddily to herself.

Stan, Ford and Soos walked outside just a few seconds after Mabel did, the two old men clearly still annoyed at each other. Dipper was the last one to exit, shooting his sister a menacing glare, glare which she couldn't take seriously with the lipstick stains he had all over his face. There was no sign of Pacifica, which led her to believe that the blonde had exited through the back door.

"What's up with your face?" Stan inquired as he pointed at the brunet's face.

Dipper cocked a brow at his great-uncle and turned around to see his reflection on his car's windows, which made his face turn beet-red.

"NOTHING!" he quickly yelled, his voice cracking again, and proceeded to grab the hem of his shirt to wipe his face.

The twins said their goodbyes, saddened to be leaving their favorite place on Earth. Stan promised to try and convince their parents to allow them back next year, but they both doubted it. Ford gave Dipper one his books on supernatural research to help him with his studies, which the boy gladly accepted. They set their luggage on the trunk of Stan's car and gave each of the three men a hug, both of them on the verge of tears.

"Hey now, don't be like that." Ford said as he rubbed Mabel's shoulder reassuringly. "There's still a chance you might come back next year."

"Yeah, and maybe then you'll get to meet Ash." Soos added, which caused everyone to stare at him confusedly.

"Who's Ash?" Dipper asked.

"Oh right, I never told you!" he chuckled as he slapped his forehead. "Melody's pregnant."

"WHAT?!" Mabel squealed, a wide smile across her face. "You're having a baby? I can't believe you didn't tell me that!"

"Yeah, congrats Soos!" Dipper patted his Hispanic friend on the back.

"Thanks, dudes." Soos blushed and scratched the back of his head. "We just found out it's a boy. And Melody agreed to let me name him after my favorite videogame character!"

"I just hope you're not thinking about asking for a raise, now that you're getting an extra mouth to feed." Stan warned him, looking rather irritated.

Mabel giggled as she pulled off her backpack and turned around to drop it into the trunk. Ford was smiling at the joy of his brother's employee, but his smile quickly dropped when his gaze fell upon Mabel's back. Dipper noticed how quickly Ford's mood changed and followed his gaze, his eyes widening at what he saw.

"Mabel!" Ford shouted, causing the brunette to jump in surprise. "What is the meaning of this?!"

"The meaning of what?" Mabel panted from the scare, her heart thumping against her chest.

"Your sweater!" Ford pointed at the yellow piece of clothing as he took a step forward. "Where did you get it?"

"What's wrong with it?" she looked down at herself, not seeing anything wrong with the sweater.

"The back." Dipper whispered to his sister, feeling a bit nervous himself.

Mabel cocked a brow at her brother and pulled the sweater over her head. She gasped when she saw what was on the back, understanding why Ford looked so mad: sown onto the back with black thread was a drawing of Bill's triangular form. She couldn't believe he had given her something that could blow his cover so easily. Maybe he wasn't expecting Ford to see it, but still. What was he thinking?

She slowly raised her head to look up at her angry great-uncle, giggling nervously as her cheeks flushed red.

"I think you have some explaining to do, young lady." Ford stated as he crossed his arms. "And that goes for you too, Dipper."

The twins sighed in unison. Now they really were done for.


End file.
